Why OKC Thunder's Sam Presti Might Not Repeat as Executive of the Year

Fittingly, Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti won his first career Executive of the Year award in the same season the Thunder won its first NBA championship.

Presti engineered a productive 2024 offseason. He traded for veteran Alex Caruso on June 21, and the two-time All-Defensive guard was a perfect piece as a chaos creator and catch-and-shoot threat during Oklahoma City's playoff run.

Presti then signed veteran free agent Isaiah Hartenstein on July 6, who filled in seamlessly at center for Chet Holmgren in the regular season and helped keep the Thunder's bench afloat throughout the playoffs with consistent rebounding, secondary playmaking and defense.

These two moves would have been enough for Presti to secure the NBA's most prestigious front office accolade, yet he also signed Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe to team-friendly extensions on July 7. Wiggins broke out into a double-digit scorer while Joe maintained elite 3-point shooting last season. Drafting UC Santa Barbara guard Ajay Mitchell with the NBA draft's No. 38 pick on June 27 was the icing on the cake.

One basketball executive from each NBA team voted for Executive of the Year. Presti won the most first-place votes (10), overall votes (22) and total points, finishing ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers' Koby Altman and the Detroit Pistons' Trajan Langdon.

Among the last 10 Executive of the Year winners, Presti's roster won the most regular-season games (68) and joined the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors and 2023-24 Boston Celtics as championship teams.

Too Much Continuity

This offseason, Presti extended reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for at least four years (July 7), extended All-Star Jalen Williams for five years (July 13), extended Holmgren for five years (July 13), extended Jaylin Williams for three years (June 29), extended Ajay Mitchell for three years (July 6), signed Brandon Carlson on a two-way contract (July 8), drafted Georgetown center Thomas Sorber with the No. 15 pick (June 25) and drafted Northwestern wing Brooks Barnhizer with the No. 44 pick (June 26).

Extensions to five rotation players, including Oklahoma City's three best players, will arguably set the franchise up for more long-term success than its 2024 moves.

Unfortunately, recent Executives of the Year have not been decided by continuity, even though it is a no-brainer mentality for the Thunder. From Bob Myers signing Kevin Durant in the 2016 offseason to Brad Stevens trading for Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday, all 10 winners during the last decade added at least one impactful starter — with most being star players.

Also, seven of the last 10 winners improved by double-digit games, including the 2024-25 Thunder. The upcoming team would need to shatter the NBA single-season record to join that group.

Presti and the Thunder front office laid meticulous groundwork for the current core. Nine of the 14 players on Oklahoma City's 2025 playoff roster have not suited up on any other team. The exceptions include Joe, who played 992 minutes with the Philadelphia 76ers from 2020-22, Kenrich Williams, who played 1,911 minutes with the New Orleans Pelicans from 2018-20, and Gilgeous-Alexander, who played his rookie season with the 2018-19 LA Clippers.

Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Holmgren were lottery picks who have lived up to their status. However, eight of the Thunder's next nine most utilized players during the playoffs were second-rounders or undrafted, highlighting Presti's talent evaluation. Luguentz Dort (undrafted, 2019) and Hartenstein (No. 43, 2017) were regular starters all season, while Caruso (undrafted, 2016), Wiggins (No. 55, 2021), Joe (No. 49, 2020) and Jaylin Williams (No. 34, 2022) made crucial contributions off the bench.

In short, Presti will not be the 2025-26 Executive of the Year, but his roster construction transcends that honor.