Thunder GM Urges Process Over Repeat

In a more-than-two-hour preseason address as training camp opened, Thunder GM Sam Presti urged the team to treat the 2025–26 season as a new beginning and to focus on “repeating a process” rather than chasing outcomes. He warned that repeating as champions is a rare, difficult feat (not achieved since the 2017–18 Warriors) and acknowledged the long odds, saying the team cannot approach this year the same way it did last season. Presti defended the franchise’s $822 million commitment to core players Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander (the 2025 MVP), Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, calling them young, improving cornerstones essential to sustained success. He credited head coach Mark Daigneault’s leadership, continuous‑learning approach and “0‑0 mentality” as central to the Thunder’s rise. Presti also praised former Thunder Russell Westbrook’s community involvement, highlighting his funding of the OKC for Soccer initiative as an example of positive off‑court impact.