As the primary architect of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Sam Presti was clearly gong to have something to do with how the upcoming NBA season shook out.
For as much as OKC’s executive vice president and general manager has been instrumental in building the Thunder into a perennial contender in the current NBA landscape, though, the players not on the team are also poised to shape the fortunes of numerous franchises in 2026-27.
The success of those players is also part of this most recent era of Presti as one of the league’s top executives – when his successes have become less about the obvious talents (headlined by Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook when he first started with the SuperSonics/Thunder franchise) and more about identifying rising talents who could be elevated.
Before SGA Was SGA
The now-infamous trade that sent Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, five first-round picks and two first-round swaps was a masterclass in asset management from Presti, as much as it was a key misstep in the construction of the Clippers.
At the time, SGA was not a two-time MVP and NBA Finals winner. He was a player who averaged fewer than 11 points per game and had some promise to become a become a bigger talent over time. But those expectations did not include the 99th-percentile observed since.
Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 30 or more points per game for four straight years, won two straight MVPs, and has been All-NBA for the last four years as well.
That trade also yielded numerous Thunder draft picks, perhaps chief among then, Jalen Williams – himself an All-NBA talent and NBA Finals MVP in 2025.
Paired with SGA and Chet Holmgren, Williams also forms the core of what is one of the NBA’s deepest rosters and most bankable championship contenders in 2026-27 and beyond. Current odds have the team tied for the highest chance to win the NBA Finals in June, at +270.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 03: James Harden #13 of the Brooklyn Nets congratulates teammate Kevin Durant #7 after Durant hit a shot to secure the lead in the final minute of the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Barclays Center on December 03, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Brooklyn Nets defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-105. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
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The First OKC Talent Diaspora
Despite the Westbrook and Durant Thunder initially taking shape nearly two decades ago, two key pieces of the 2012 runner-ups are still poised to make a significant impact on this year’s title chase.
Durant himself is entering his 19th season in the NBA and returns to the Houston Rockets after leading the team in scoring in 2025-26. And though the team may not exist on the same tier as the Thunder and San Antonio Spurs (the latter also a former Presti employer), the Rockets are among the handful of West teams that look like a surefire playoff participant.
The third player that really made that 2012 Thunder team go was James Harden – then a key talent off the bench, who was an excellent shooter but was never going to get the volume of touches required to elevate his game beyond a certain point on the same team as Westbrook and Durant.
Fast forward a few months from that NBA Finals loss and Harden was traded to the Rockets, Houston became an annual threat to win the West and Harden averaged 29 or more points for five straight seasons (including 36 in 2018-19).
An MVP award (in 2018) and several teams later, Harden will be counted on to help get the Cleveland Cavaliers over the hump in the Eastern Conference after falling short this year.
Following his trade from the Clippers to Cleveland, Harden averaged 20.5 points on 46.6% shooting, which was his highest rate with one team since he hit 47.1% with the Nets for part of the 2020-21 campaign. He averaged 19.2 points per game in the postseason with the Cavs last year as well.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA – NOVEMBER 26: Luguentz Dort #5 of the Oklahoma City Thunder blocks an inbound throw during the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Paycom Center on November 26, 2025 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Photo by William Purnell/Getty Images)
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Recent Moves And Cap Casualties
As mentioned earlier, many of Presti’s more recent additions have relied less on raw and obvious talents (like Durant and Harden) and on the ability to identify and develop players within the OKC system. But due to second apron concerns, not all of those success stories have been able to stay on the Thunder roster.
The 2021 draft featured six Thunder picks, including Josh Giddey, Miles McBride, Alperen Şengün and Aaron Wiggins; with McBride and Şengün dealt almost immediately.
McBride was a key player in the New York Knicks’ rotation en route to a championship this past June. Şengün has averaged 20 points per game in two of the last three seasons, and was named to two straight NBA All-Star teams.
Giddey was productive with the Thunder almost right away, but was dealt to the Chicago Bulls in 2024. He’s since become one of Chicago’s best players while improving as a three-point shooter and standout starter for the team about to rebuild.
Wiggins, on the other hand, was one of the more recent departures, heading to the Atlanta Hawks this offseason in exchange for draft capital. He’ll be part of an athletic and young Hawks group that also includes Lugentz Dort – the eight-year OKC guard who was dealt to Atlanta earlier in the offseason for what amounted to a trade exception.
Those returns shouldn’t minimize their impact on the Thunder, however. Neither Wiggins nor Dort entered the league with elite evaluations, and Dort went undrafted. Yet both played key roles for the Thunder in forming the current team’s identity, and will now be called upon to do the same for a Hawks team that is still rising and already has “only team to win two games off the Knicks last posteason” on the resume.
The Thunder will also be playing without three-point specialist Isaiah Joe this season, after dealing him to the Detroit Pistons (for picks and a trade exception). Detroit’s shooting struggles in the playoffs last year were a key point of emphasis for the offseason, making the 42% three-point shooter an essential add.
OKC’s cupboards are far from bare in these players’ absences, though, which is the point.
The roster is loaded with talent, including both drafted players yet to get much time, and reclamation projects like Jared McCain – who Presti nabbed from the Philadelphia 76ers last year after he largely fell out of the rotation. McCain went on to average 10 points per game in the playoffs and 13 per against the Spurs.
All told, that’s a significant list of contenders (plus the Bulls) with at least some reliance on Presti moves or players this season.
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