Sam Presti sure deserves plenty of credit for what he’s done for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
He built a team through the NBA Draft and made them championship contenders, pairing Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka, and James Harden.
Then, he drew plenty of criticism for trading Harden and holding on to Ibaka, but the Thunder remained in contention.
Presti later landed budding stars like Victor Oladipo, Domantas Sabonis, and even Paul George and Carmelo Anthony to stay as a threat in the West even after Durant left.
And now, he’s gathered a historical arsenal of draft picks as well as a legit franchise player in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and the early returns are more than encouraging.
That’s why an OKC Thunder fan account pointed out that their rebuild is going better than the Houston Rockets’, and it would be tough to disagree with it.
Thunder rebuild > Rockets rebuild and it’s not even close pic.twitter.com/qFNRMByes1
— Chet Holmgren stan (@chethomgrenszn) January 18, 2023
Besides Shai, the Thunder have found a legit PG in Josh Giddey, an outstanding 3-and-D guy in Luguentz Dort, and a potential star in Jalen Williams.
All that while second-overall pick Chet Holmgren is out with a foot injury.
The Rockets have also added plenty of young talents like Kevin Porter Jr., Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Tari Eason, TyTy Washington, and Jabari Smith Jr.
Nonetheless, the Thunder are already contending for a playoff spot, whereas the Rockets are still a ways away from it.
More than that, the Thunder still have a whopping 38 draft picks in coming years (19 first-round picks and 19 second-round picks), so they could still add more young talent or trade for a superstar.
Yeah, they definitely won this round.
NEXT: The Thunder Have Put Tanking In The Rearview Mirror