	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 21, 2016

Sam Presti

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

SAM PRESTI: Good morning. First, obviously, just want to thank everybody for joining us today. Couple remarks before we start and get to your questions and do our best to answer everything that you guys have. I would be remiss if I didn't say, as I have every year, we're heading into the ninth season in Oklahoma City and the time has absolutely flown by, I think, for a lot of us with the Thunder. To the point where I feel like the Thunder is at this point like one continuous experience that everyone in Oklahoma and around the world has been able to associate with. I think that's part of what makes this time of year so exciting around here and both within the building and also around the city.

With that said, our approach to each season has been the same. We want to build great habits. We want to understand that the work that we put in each day isn't going to necessarily give us immediate results, but we're working towards building the best team and finding the best version of ourselves every year. We want to create a great environment for our players, our coaches, our staff to do their best work and allow them to leverage their strengths with one another so that we can really have a great year and an enjoyable season.

I think there's a real positive energy and enthusiasm amongst the players, the staff in general, and I think I've picked that up around the city as well, which is so great. I think people are starting to realize around this time of year basketball season's starting and people get excited about that.

Billy and his staff have been tremendous this summer. They've put in so much work immediately following the end of last season reviewing that season, and heading into Summer League, reviewing Summer League, and creating our development growth plans for the off-season. Then obviously there you get into training camp.

For me being around Billy now for a full season and a full off-season, it's really becomes apparent just how much he adds to the organization by not just being the coach of the team but how he goes about his work and how invested he is in the growth and development of not only the players but also the organization.

I think we've got a unique blend of athleticism, physicality and also, I think, just high motor players on the roster this year. It's going to be a process of discovery for ourselves, as I said before, to find the best version of ourselves. That's been the same as every year that we've been here in terms of trying to continue to learn and grow through the season.

But I'm really, really excited about the group that we have and watching them come together because I think they also have a tremendous opportunity to come together as a really cohesive team and a team that's really connected on an emotional level.

I think, again, the group, like all the groups we've had, they want the opportunity to compete. We as an organization relish that opportunity to continue to come into each season knowing that the only thing we're entitled to or promised is the opportunity to lineup every day, have the best day we can and find ways to get better individually and collectively.

So I think this is another moment in time for the Thunder to build on the vision and the values that we've become known for, the energy that we've become known for. I think it's also an opportunity for our city to enjoy another year of basketball. And as I said before we always want to embody the values that Oklahoma ans represent, a commitment to hard work, a commitment to resiliency, a commitment to high-character individuals and, I think as well, a commitment to collaboration and working together as a unified group.

I think those things together truly are why I think a lot of people feel like everyone's a part of Loud City. It's not just confined to the upper level of our arena. But anybody that comes in contact with the Thunder is part of Loud City, and I think we all feel that way, which is why it's great to be around basketball this time of the year. So with that, I'll be happy to answer any questions.

Q. As the guys get back into town have you noticed any changes in Russell in particular just the way he's approaching things? His leadership, his demeanor, those sorts of things?
SAM PRESTI: I think it would be hard for me to make a snap judgment just because we haven't really started a whole lot. But I would say this: I would say for anybody as a leader, you know, coming into a different environment and different circumstances, I think the expectation would be that you would continue to grow and evolve I think, and I think that's his expectation. So there's opportunity across the board for our entire team, our entire roster, entire staff, and that's where I think a lot of the excitement and enthusiasm comes from. But Russell has been a player and person that's evolved every step of the way, and I think this is another opportunity for him to do that.

Q. You probably have noticed this, but you've got five guys on this team now from that 2013 draft. What does that say about the plan you have for this team? Does that speak to you or what does that say exactly?
SAM PRESTI: I don't know. Honestly, I don't know. I think for us we've always tried to find players that we feel like fit the criteria I was talking about earlier. The vision for the organization. I think obviously in today's NBA with so many uncertainties and so many things that are outside your control, having young, developing or emerging players that you can have the opportunity to extend or match given their contracts, I think that's always important. Because as I said before, we see the Thunder as one continuous experience and the opportunity to continue to grow and develop players that can become fixtures. Players that embody a lot of what we're looking for and that have really bought into what the Thunder offer. I think that's important and we feel really good about those players.

Q. What about Sabonis playing in the Olympics before his rookie year?
SAM PRESTI: I mean, anytime as a young player you're exposed to that level of competition, being amongst teams, professionals with the Lithuanian National Team, I think it's great. He obviously is coming off a tremendous program, working a tremendous program at Gonzaga, and now with the National Team. Now he's going to carry that experience towards the Thunder.

Q. (No Microphone) little bit more than a month now. Domantas has already signed. I'm wondering in terms of negotiations, does it work how free agency and baseline contracts? Does one guy set a baseline, or are negotiations kind of individual and specific in that sense?
SAM PRESTI: The way I look at each deal is every one of them is unique to itself because you're dealing with people. You're dealing with priorities. You're dealing with all the different factors, and then a lot of times you don't even know what you're dealing with outside of what you think you're dealing with.

I wouldn't look at it too deeply other than, obviously, he felt great about the situation that he was a part of, and when you have two motivated parties, generally you can find that opportunity to find a common ground. At the same time if those things don't get completed, then you go into the next summer. Obviously you go into free agency and it's a restricted free agency. I look at that as more of an opportunity than a necessity.

Q. Do you have enough shooting with the NBA going three-point crazy? Does it seem to be a weakness with this roster?
SAM PRESTI: Well, I think obviously you'd like to have a surplus of everything on any team. And until we see the team and the style of play, until we have the opportunity to identify what the creative limitations are with this particular roster, I think it's going to be really hard to sit back and say we need to have this or we need to have that.

I think that in and of itself is what creates part of the excitement and enthusiasm that we have as a team. Which is we're going to learn more about the team, understand the team. But if we were to just make judgments based off of what we think verses what we know, I think we'll be really missing a learning opportunity.

So we'll be able to answer that question. As I've said to you and a lot of other people in this room over time, it's one thing to identify what you'd like to have. It's a completely different exercise to try to improve that based on what's available. So, yeah, we'd like to have everything. But until we know kind of how this particular team is going to look and evolve, it would be really hard for us to make a judgment on what we do or we don't have.

I do think one thing we can say we have is I do think we have a physicality to us, an athleticism to us, and I think there's a competitive spirit to this particular group that's really fun to be around.

How that comes together and how Billy charts the path for us to find and craft our own identity, that's what we're waiting to see.

Q. You mentioned the physicality of your defense that came together so well in the Playoffs last year, but obviously a couple of the guys that really played great defense down the stretch in Serge and Kevin are gone. Can this team play defense? It probably will look different, but can it play defense like last year's team eventually?
SAM PRESTI: Well, I would say that for us to be successful we've always kind of pointed to a few different aspects of the game. And that's just, again, part of the identity of the organization. Part of the identity of the Thunder has been athletic, physical and really putting a premium on the defensive end of the floor. I really don't see that changing. We think those are core tenets to having a successful team, whether you're playing in the NBA, the Euroleague or the Catholic league here.

So we'll have to work at that, as I said earlier. We're not going to walk in day one of training camp and be an elite defensive team. But I would also say no team's going to do that. It's the teams that really understand what drive their success on the defensive end of the floor, build up great discipline habits and can apply those regardless of who they're playing, when they're playing and where they're playing.

We want to be a really good defensive team. I think we have the opportunity to do that, but that takes a lot of work and a lot of patience on the details of the game. And hopefully you're playing really, really well by the end of the season on that end of the floor.

Q. What would you like to emphasize about that guy that everybody wants? Is Victor that guy for you all?
SAM PRESTI: Well, you use the term everybody, so I don't mythicize, is that a word? You're the writer, so it is a word. Mythicize. But, yeah, I mean, we look for good players. We look for players that complement our group as a whole. And I think when everyone's looking for the same things, I think you run a higher risk of finding limited options in mediocrity in different things. Therefore, for us, we've really embraced opportunities to add players and look to leverage those players' strengths.

So I like our size. I think a year ago people would have said that you can't play with size anymore in the NBA. For us, we saw the opportunity to try to cultivate some different lineups with that size. That, again, goes back to Billy Donovan's approach to a season, his creativity, his ability to think in like progressions so that he's not cutting off options in the first 20 to 40 games of the season. He's constantly looking for ways to, A, build habits, but also how can we build a competitive difference.

But Victor is definitely a player that presents great athleticism, great speed, high-character, professionalism, and a competitive spirit that we value. How that fits into an entire team, that's to me the path of the season for us.

Q. How do you deal with Mitch McGary for the season given his latest suspension?
SAM PRESTI: For me, I'm disappointed in the fact that he's in that situation. We're not privy to the NBA's program, so I don't have a whole lot of information. All I can say to you is that I'm disappointed. Then from there, I don't think I have to expand past that.

Q. What are your options with McGary?
SAM PRESTI: Well, I mean, listen, he's under contract with the team. He'll be with us in training camp with an opportunity to compete. All that being said, I think it's going to be a competitive camp. We've got probably more deserving players lined up to come to camp than we have roster spots. But I think that's a strong position to be in as a team, as an organization. We're excited about that. I know the coaches are, and we're probably going to have some tough decisions to make.

But as an organization and a basketball team, you want to be in that position.

Q. You have 16 guys who are going to be guaranteed come opening day. Do you have a plan in place for how you're going to get down to 15 or is that something you'll figure out in training camp? If so, how do you manage what you see in training camp versus kind of the sample size of information that you already have for the season?
SAM PRESTI: I think it's like one of these situations where you have to kind of be here now. You have to kind of embrace where you are as a team. We're learning about our team and we're going to continue to do that past the first game of the regular season. But that's what camp is for. We're going to look at different combination, speak with the front office and the coaching staff and try to figure out what combination of players can build the most cohesive, connected, fundamentally and discipline sound team for the Thunder.

The plan is dictated by the fact that we do have to cut down by a certain date with the rest of the league. But leading up to that particular date, I think we don't want to be self-limiting by saying or predicting what's going to happen versus let's see where we are, and let's not necessarily project too far ahead, because we have to let the information tell us where we are.

Q. What's your role to help Kanter in some of the situations and issues he's had for the summer?
SAM PRESTI: Well, again, I know what you're referring to. So number one is be available and supportive to him as a person. We've always talked about that as an organization. We want to treat our players and our staff as people and human beings first and provide resources to them for whatever situation they might need.

At the same time, he's a professional basketball player for the Thunder, and our expectation, like all of our players is to arrive at work every day, ready to commit to what we need to do as a basketball team. And I have every confidence that Enes will do that.

Q. Over the last month or so there have been some silent protests during the National Anthem over racial injustice and different things. Have you talked to your players about the protest? If not, what will you talk to them about?
SAM PRESTI: Sure. Specific conversations and things of that nature, I never feel comfortable coming up here and transcribing for everyone. But obviously it's a topic and an important topic. Our viewpoint on it is obviously we've had players and staff stand for the National Anthem over the past eight years. We'd love to see that continue. At the same time, our players have the opportunity and ability to express themselves as people, and we respect that above all.

I know that through dialogue and conversation, the NBA and the Players Union are usually ahead of these types of situations, and I'm sure they're working in concert now. And that's something I think we take pretty seriously as an organization as well. And we have good relationships with our players. We want to work with them. We want to learn how we can help them take the symbol and try to create platforms for action. And I think that's one of the great roles that any organization can play, especially here in Oklahoma City, which is great, given our relationship with the community.

Q. Billy showed in the playoffs last year his ability to be creative and using guys in unique ways like Andre and lineups and that sort of thing. Are you excited to see what he does with this group? Kind of a fresh look for your guys?
SAM PRESTI: Yeah, again, like I said before, we're excited about the group we have. But I think part of that excitement is the fact that it's competition, and we relish that as an organization. We've always relished that as an organization. It's the only thing you're entitled to when you show up to an NBA season. Our approach has always been the same in trying to discover different ways we can grow and evolve during the season.

I think Billy did an excellent job. He could have been really shortsighted and impulsive, especially last season with so many uncertainties in being new to the job. He showed such competitive maturity and wisdom through that. I think he's going to do a great job, but I think it will be progressional. And I think there will always be a plan of attack, but it's going to be to continue to create different options for us as a basketball team.

We're not immune to the fact that we have to continue to develop a style of play. At the same time, I think the core tenets of what we believe and what we stand for and what we're about, those things are very, very consistent. We're not competing with our past. We never have. But we are 100% committed and excited about creating our future, and that is what I think people sense, and that is what makes it great to be a part of what we're doing right now.

Q. How important is this off-season considering the roster overturned and some of the changes in style of play?
SAM PRESTI: Well, I think every off-season is important in the sense that you're learning and one of the things that we wanted to be as an organization over the last eight years, now heading into nine, is we want to be a learning organization. We want to have a growth mindset of how we can do things differently and better.

As I said before, listen, we are presented with a situation and we've moved and turned the page. We've moved forward and now we're focused on how do we continue to build on the values and the principles that have been in place. That's to me the mentality or mindset that we've always applied. And that's one of the telling things to me about where we are as a program and an organization. We're in lock step with the principles. We believe and stand for the same things. The path will be different, the journey will be a little different, but it's one continuous approach to basketball in Oklahoma City.

And I hope we continue to maintain that mindset and learn from every season, and I think we will. I think Billy and the staff do a great job of taking what is an organizational philosophy and applying that to the court.

Q. What's the team need to do this year to help Russell in terms of his responsibility?
SAM PRESTI: Well, I think again, like it would be hard for us to sit back and say X, Y and Z need to happen when you have as much newness as we do. I think the number one thing is understand that we're going to be going through a process of learning and discovery about our team and where we are at present. Because I think achievement is all about where you start from and it's not based on predictions, projections, past history, or symbols of achievement. It's all based on where you start from, and I think we're getting a baseline for that in camp.

We know a few things about Russell at this point. He's going to bring his lunch pail every day. He's going to compete. He's going to inspire. He's going to show great conviction and courage to his teammates, to the city, to the organization. And from there we have to figure out how that comes together.

I think it would be a mistake to saddle him with responsibilities when, in reality, this is really a collective experience. It's a 15 -- we need 15 players aligned, committed, and understanding where we want to go. He obviously is leading the charge, but it's really a collective thing. That's why we always talk about from the first guy on the roster to the 15th guy on the roster and everybody around them, they're contributing in some way to who we want to be.

Q. You talked about you're optimistic about the future. I think we have a clear identity of who we are. Can you describe that identity and how you see that?
SAM PRESTI: Sure, as I said before, the things that I think the Thunder have steadily become known for remain implanted season to season. My hope is that people, when they come in contact or are associated with the organization or see the logo that they know that we're a place of hard work. We're a place of deep people and diverse people. We're a place that relishes the opportunity to compete, not just the symbols or the outcomes of the competition. We're an opportunity -- excuse me, we're a team that's continuing to try to learn and grow. And I would hope that those are the core foundations or principles of the organization. That guides a lot of what we're trying to do.

We talk all the time, John, about creating our legacy in realtime. This is year nine. This is another moment in time for us as an organization to continue to write what is largely another chapter in what is largely an unwritten book. How do we do that? We do that by relentlessly pursuing improvement and process, and hopefully the outcome is conditions that help our players and our team, and everyone associated with the organization thrive in what they're doing.

We believe those are the things that will yield results. Some years it's different than others, but those principles are the ones we live by.

Q. What do you see Alex's role being in the first year with the team?
SAM PRESTI: I'm glad you asked that question. One of the things we're really excited about was the opportunity to bring him over. In a lot of ways it's like adding an additional draft pick. People sometimes forget how young he really is. Just given the fact that he's played professionally for so long. I think like with any emerging player or any player transitioning from Europe to the NBA, there will be assimilation process, especially given the fact that our team is assimilating to identify where everybody's strengths can be leveraged. I think the systems that Billy will put in place are going to be important to everybody's overall growth.

For us, it was great to have him in the immediacy, but we see long-term an opportunity for him to grow and thrive with us. But there will be a little bit of a transition for sure. But he shoots the basketball at a high level. He's got good size. He's bigger than people probably realize when you get up close to him. And he has a good understanding of how to play and what his game is, which I think happens when you play overseas at that level.

But there is going to be some transition because it's a little bit different. But he's a quiet competitor is what I would say, and we're really excited not just to have him now, but we see a long-term future for him here.

Q. What have you thought about Cameron's recovery this off-season?
SAM PRESTI: You know, he's playing five-on-five. We know as a program. And we talked a lot about this one when I answered Fred's question and Barry's question. We're going to try to evaluate the season as it unfolds. Not predict things or make quick judgments. He's going to be a little rusty because he hasn't played as much basketball. But the most important thing is he's healthy. He's in a really good position going forward. We'll have to watch some things just because he's assimilating back into normal workloads.

But he's, you know, unrestricted and should be able to go through as much as our training staff feels like he's capable of. But we're not going to be able to evaluate where he is based on what we're seeing in the media see. I think we're going to have to understand in context that he's coming back from that injury.

Q. Billy has a situation he has not signed on for 16 months ago. How do you think he's responded to change and how do you think he's going to do with the roster that's a lot different than the one he coached last May?
SAM PRESTI: I think he -- how did you phrase the question? You said he didn't sign on?

Q. It's not the same situation he signed on to.
SAM PRESTI: Yeah, so I actually think if you asked him that question, and you should, I think it is the same situation he signed on for because the things that make a Billy Donovan a Billy Donovan is he wants to be the coach of the Thunder. He wants to coach in Oklahoma City. He wants to coach with an organization that is committed to the values that I've covered with John and with Fred.

I think those are the things that drive a person like Billy Donovan. He wants to be a part of something. He wants to be a part of representing a city and the values of a city. And he wants to work his craft. Anyone that gets involved with the NBA has to come in understanding that change and players and different things, that's part of the business. There are so many things you don't control. What we've tried to do as a program as I've said before is have a continuous approach to our work every single day. I think that's what drives Billy Donovan.

I think, and I said this in my opening remarks, that's one of the strengths of our organization. Billy Donovan is a person that is very creative. He's a guy that has shown a lot of evolution. If you go back and think about the press conference when we introduced him. I talked a lot about there are a few factors as to why we hired him. One was he's evolved as a coach tremendously over a period of time. Different rosters, players coming and going at Florida. He's won with big lineups, small lineups. He's won with lottery picks and without lottery picks. It's come from a systematic approach that he's applied. He also has a characteristic of a high potential individual, whether it's a coach or a different industry, which is curiosity and asking questions. And the other thing he's aligned with the vision and the principles that we hold as an organization.

So I think that that's one of the reasons why we're so optimistic and excited because we think he's a tremendous coach to have right now. Not just in the Thunder situation, but if you look around the NBA right now, the dynamics that have overtaken the league and the way that circumstances have affected team building, I think having someone like Billy is tremendously important.

Q. Talk about bringing (Inaudible) him into the organization and being a good fit. Are you also encouraging bringing him in that he has this upside to him and he's gotten incrementally better every season he's been in the league?
SAM PRESTI: Absolutely. And I'm really excited for our fans and for you guys as well because he hasn't really had the formal introduction because around that period of time, we had some stuff going on.

But Victor is, I think people here in Oklahoma City are going to take to him very quickly and very kindly. He, in addition to getting better season by season, I mean, it's exciting to think about the speed, agility, quickness and ferocity of a Westbrook-Oladipo backcourt. That's exciting for us. So couple that with some of the other big, physical, athletic players that we have those are the things that get you excited.

So I'm excited that he's in the program. I'm excited that he's in the community. Those are all positives.

To Barry's point, he asked about the shooting. There has to be in competitive sports more ways to win than one. I think we demonstrated that last year. We weren't a great three-point shooting team. When we won, we won by playing to our strengths. Leveraging our advantages. If everyone's trying to win the same way, I think it's the easiest path to the middle, and we have to continue to figure out what that path for us is going to be to maximizing ourselves as a team. I wouldn't say just this season, but I think moving forward as well because, as we know, teams change, players change. Principles, I think are the things that are the underpinning to your organization. I think Victor fits a lot of those principles for us.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297