Sam Presti Completed the Rebuild Speedrun

Just six years later, the Thunder hoisted the Larry O’Brien Trophy for the first time in Oklahoma City history, from devastation to dominance in light speed.

A championship team isn’t built by luck; this is how the brilliant mind of Presti created a potential dynasty.

The Trade(s) Heard Around the Globe

At 12:55 am CST on July 6, 2019, Adrian Wojnarowski reported the Thunder sent George to the Clippers for record-setting draft compensation. Just three minutes later, the full details were announced, and the Clippers shipped rising star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, along with Danilo Gallinari, to OKC as well.

The Thunder began its draft pick collection, along with adding a young player to build around in Gilgeous-Alexander. Then, the Clippers grabbed an MVP candidate in George, though at a steep price.

Just two days later, the Thunder traded Jerami Grant to the Denver Nuggets for another first. That same day, Westbrook publicly requested a trade.

Westbrook would be sent to the Houston Rockets in return for Chris Paul. CP3 would go on to have a stellar season with OKC, leading them to the playoffs but losing to Westbrook’s Rockets in seven games in the first round.

The Thunder sent Paul to Phoenix for more draft assets in part of a complete roster overhaul from the playoff team the year prior. Gallinari, Dennis Schroder, Steven Adams, and Terrance Ferguson were also shipped out.

Leading back to the original trade, George brought the Clippers short-term success, such as bringing them to their first-ever Western Conference Finals in 2021, but his time with Los Angeles was plagued with playoff misfortune. Presti made the most of his returns in the trade.

Gilgeous-Alexander has become a three-time All-NBA first-teamer, a three-time All-Star, and a Finals MVP in his six seasons in OKC. As a result, he became the face of the Thunder franchise.

SGA was just the first of many fortunes Presti acquired from the trade.

The Black Eye of the NBA

The Thunder only bottomed out and tanked for two seasons in the rebuild. To some, this was still too long.

In fact, Justin Termine of Sirius XM called Sam Presti and the Thunder “a black-eye for the NBA” in a now-deleted tweet. Luckily, Thunder Film Room on X has the screenshot.

Termine deleted the tweet shortly after the Thunder won the NBA Finals. Even Thunder players took notice of the slander, as Aaron Wiggins mocked the phrase during his speech at the Thunder Championship Parade.

The first year and a half of the tank was rough. Presti took a massive swing and miss at a project in Aleksej Pokusevski to kick off the rebuild, and then the lottery luck went against OKC’s favor despite having the fourth-best odds at No. 1.

Oklahoma City fell to No. 6 in the 2021 draft and selected Josh Giddey. The Thunder ended up with a worse record in the next season.

However, in the 2022 Draft Lottery, dirt turned into gold for OKC.

Sam Presti’s Perfect Draft

Presti’s 2022 Draft was immaculate.

First, the Thunder finally received lottery fortune, landing the No. 2 and No. 12 selections in the draft. OKC would then select Chet Holmgren at two.

Holmgren would become the defensive anchor of a championship core just three years later. He had an unmatched defensive impact despite missing his entire first season with a Lisfranc injury.

OKC traded up to No. 11 with the New York Knicks to not only take a swing at  Ousmane Dieng but also to secure Jalen Williams at 12. Dieng has shown flashes to this point, but the Thunder became competitive too quickly for him to get constant playing time at the NBA level.

JDub’s pick was acquired by the Thunder in the PG13 deal. Yet another star Presti gained from the blockbuster trade.

JDub became a top-three pick in the draft and is the perfect costar to Gilgeous-Alexander. He fought through a ligament tear in his wrist throughout the entire finals run but still played the best game of his career on the biggest stage.

Williams became the ninth player in NBA history to score 40 points in the Finals before turning 25. A phenomenal selection in the late lottery.

Lastly, OKC selected Jaylin Williams at No. 34. JWill became a key player not only in the rotation but also in the locker room.

He inked a new three-year extension this offseason to stay with the team that drafted him.

Presti’s 2022 draft class’s fingerprints are all over the championship run.

Locking Down the Rotation

The 2024-25 OKC Thunder is one of the greatest defenses the league has ever seen . Presti created a defensive force to grow and compete alongside Head Coach Mark Daigneault.

It all started on June 21, 2019, when Luguentz Dort went undrafted, and the Thunder scooped him up almost immediately after the draft ended.

Dort would become the defensive staple of the Thunder lineup, a player who lives and breathes Thunder culture. After all, he is the longest-tenured Thunder player for a reason.

Dort’s development story is unheard of. He’s gone from a sub-30% three-point shooter in his rookie year to now a 40% three-point marksman in each of the past two seasons. As his moonballs float upwards and dip into the net, chants of “Luuuuu” echo throughout Paycom Center.

Along with winning the championship, this season was the first time Dort was named to the All-Defensive team. He placed fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.

The two key veterans that pushed OKC over the hump this season were Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. Both joined the team in the 2024 offseason.

Presti traded Giddey for Caruso in a straight swap. Hartenstein is the highest-paid free agent signing in team history.

Both players were what the Thunder had missed the previous season, a team that had lost in the second round. Hartenstein brought size and skill, and Caruso brought elite defense and championship pedigree.

Caruso, in particular, saved his best performances for the biggest moments. He became the first player with 20 points and five steals off the bench in a finals game in Game 4.

The rest of the depth was all acquired via smart draft selections or under-the-radar offseason acquisitions.

Dominating the Margins

Cason Wallace was the 12th pick in the 2023 Draft. Along with him, the only other players in the Thunder playoff rotation that were selected in the lottery is SGA, JDub and Holmgren.

Kenrich Williams was acquired in the 2020 trade of Adams. Williams is one of the three remaining players from the first lottery team of the rebuild. He’s arguably the most important voice in the locker room, always bringing his “hustle-first” mentality.

Isaiah Joe was a roster-cut casualty during the 2022 training camp for the 76ers. The Thunder picked him up the second he cleared waivers.

Joe became one of the top three-point marksmen in the league with the Thunder. His shooting became critical multiple times throughout his Thunder career.

Lastly, Wiggins was drafted 55th overall in the 2021 draft. Wiggins turned into an “everything” player for the Thunder, with solid scoring chops and above-average defense off the bench.

Fans even say that he saved the entire sport of basketball.

Overall, Presti built the team he attempted to build for all 17 years with the Thunder organization. He built a champion within six years, and it all started with one trade.

The Thunder rebuild can never be perfectly replicated, but teams throughout the Association already started to utilize draft compensation to begin a rebuild.

Sam Presti is a basketball mastermind, and he finally has the ring he deserves.