2026 NBA draft thread

[F Gump]

Interesting that this came up on DLLS today.  Presti is Stein’s example.  One note related to your often stated demand that this needs to happen before the draft…Stein makes the point that Presti and ‘before the draft’ are not both possible.  If it is Presti, it takes longer.  If it is quick, it isn’t Presti.

https://youtu.be/Qc-vpJ1irDs?si=O0f6NfYZXjOxF2ZL

Great video ^ to explain the dynamics at play in getting a GM. Whoever has not watched it, should watch it.

"If it is Presti, it takes longer [than the draft].  If it is quick, it isn’t Presti." -- Both very true, and Stein's underlying point was even broader than that, aligning to my exact thoughts about how Presti needs to be the guy.

Stein noted the Mavs and Dumont appear to be approaching their GM pursuit with a goal of getting someone at the very top echelon of GMs. They want a proven expert. Which they should.

But where do you find such a guy? AS STEIN NOTED, that proven expert NBA GM guy is already employed, using his skills on an NBA team! That truth is why the pushback that 'You can't get Presti because he's employed elsewhere" has been meaningless to me, since that is almost certain to be true of EVERY potential candidate who is an expert GM. You can find a not-so-good one who is not employed, of course, if you will settle for that. (No thanks.)

That truth means there will be big obstacles to ALL of the BEST. They ALL will be already employed, will be hard to get, and it may require a delay in when you can get him. It's not just Presti.

So if you don't want to settle for "a GM-type guy" and you truly want The Expert, it's going to look impossible from here. Hello Finley, Hi Riccardi, Howdy Mr X (Nico Jr).

All the posts above with all the claims of how unlikely Presti would be, and how hard, and how OKC wants to keep him, and on and on, I get that. Already all baked into my thinking. But it doesn't change the situation's bottom line in pursuing a top-tier GM who is a proven expert, which is that there's only one or two things that really can't be overcome: if the guy they want has no interest AT ANY PRICE in making the move, or if he's under contract and the team isn't willing to let him make a change (for compensation, at any price). As long as there's a price, there's a path.

AND HERE'S WHY I AM INSISTENT ON PRESTI - if they are going to have to go through all of that to get anyone on the top tier, why not go ahead and just target THE BEST? You'll have to do all that hard work anyhow, right? Why settle for less?

Presti, please.