Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti is one of the best executives around and has rightly earned a whole lot of praise for putting together a juggernaut of a team in recent years. Some crafty trades, signings, and draft selections by Presti led to the Thunder winning the NBA championship in 2025 and coming ever so close to getting back to the NBA Finals in 2026.
The Thunder lost in seven games to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, and Presti now has some difficult decisions to make in the offseason. Their payroll is set to balloon next season with Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams‘ extensions kicking in, to the point that they might decide not to keep their upcoming draft picks.
The Thunder have the No. 12 and No. 17 picks in this 2026 NBA Draft, and according to salary cap analyst and NPBA agent Lucas Burns, signing them both would greatly increase their luxury tax bill for 2026-27.
“OKC is so deep into the luxury tax that simply signing two rookies with their #12 and #17 draft picks will add approximately $80 million to their luxury tax bill in 2026-27.
“OKC will likely either package their picks to move up in the draft or trade their 1st-round picks for future assets. With a full roster already, they absolutely cannot afford to take on $10 million in dead salaries, which is effectively what the #12 and #17 picks would be for OKC at this time.”
The projected salary cap for 2026-27 is $165 million. The Thunder will cross that number even if we don’t take into account the notable team options they hold.
Adding up the projected cap hits for next season, according to Spotrac, for Williams ($41.3 million), Holmgren ($41.3 million), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($40.8 million), Alex Caruso ($19.6 million), Isaiah Joe (11.3 million), Aaron Wiggins ($9.2 million), and Jaylin Williams ($7.8 million) gets you to about $174 million.
Then there are the $28.5 million and $17.7 million team options for 2026-27 for Isaiah Hartenstein and Lu Dort, respectively. That’s a lot of money and a lot of talent.
Whoever the Thunder select with those picks is unlikely to play meaningful minutes for them next season. We had them picking Labaron Philon Jr. and Koa Peat at those spots in our mock draft. They are interesting prospects, but good luck cracking that rotation right away.
NBA insider Brian Windhorst thinks the Thunder could use those two first-round picks and their second-round pick at No. 37 to move into the top 10 in this draft. Now, one of the higher-rated prospects could be ready to contribute from the get-go.
So, the Thunder are definitely a team to keep an eye on as we get closer to the draft, which will be held on June 23 and 24 at the Barclays Center.
As for the present roster, Burns sees letting go of Dort and re-signing Hartenstein on a lower yearly deal as the way to go.
“OKC could cut them both, reduce their luxury tax bill all the way down to less than $15m, AND duck the 2nd Apron.
“In reality, OKC is more likely to move on from Dort and bring Hartenstein back at a reduced number—that alone would save them up to $200m on their luxury tax bill depending on Hartenstein’s new contract.”
Dort is definitely more expendable than Hartenstein, as they have Wallace. It would be a bit of a shock if the Canadian is still on the roster next season.
Ultimately, you’d back Presti to make the right call. Gilgeous-Alexander fully trusts him to get it right, as he called him the greatest GM ever. Presti is definitely in that conversation.
