Presti, certainly, won’t claim to have foreseen an MVP …

There’s a story Thunder GM Sam Presti likes to share. In the summer of 2019, he was in his office at the Thunder practice facility putting the finishing touches on a roster deconstruction. He had finalized the deal for George and was close to an agreement with Houston for Russell Westbrook. That night, after working on an op-ed for The Oklahoman that detailed how the team would dig itself out of the basketball rubble, Presti was walking down a hallway and heard the sound of a bouncing basketball. It was Gilgeous-Alexander, fresh off completing his physical, in the gym getting up shots. Watching from an office window Presti thought to himself: Wouldn’t it be something if this guy turned out to be a really good player. Presti, certainly, won’t claim to have foreseen an MVP talent—no one did—but once it became apparent, the organization mobilized to foster it. “Tactically, it was, How do we maximize this elite skill that he has?,” says Daigneault. Give him the ball, for one. Paul was traded in 2020. Dennis Schröder, another playmaker, was shipped out, too. Later that year in the bubble, the Thunder marveled at how Gilgeous-Alexander could slip through tight spaces. The emphasis shifted to widening them.

Sports Illustrated