Sam Presti reflects on trading for Jared McCain: 'He understands winning'

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Four months into his tenure, Jared McCain has quickly become a fan favorite. When the Oklahoma City Thunder added him at the NBA trade deadline, expectations for the short term were pretty low. Just show flashes of being a potent scorer who can help out in the future.

Instead, McCain was handed the baton and ran away with it. Jettisoned to the front of the line out of necessity, the 22-year-old helped the short-handed Thunder push the San Antonio Spurs to seven games in the 2026 Western Conference Finals. Two of OKC's wins in the epic series featured 20-plus point outings by him.

Even though the Thunder didn't accomplish their goal of going back-to-back, McCain's surprise contributions remain one of OKC's biggest developments this year. Now, they can enter an offseason filled with roster decisions with some reassurance that he could help their scoring depth and beyond.

Thunder GM Sam Presti recently talked to the media in his 2025-26 end-of-season press conference. At the 100-minute event, one of the topics brought up was about McCain's arrival. They acquired him from the Philadelphia 76ers. In just three months, he went from being at the back of the bench on a play-in team to starting for the reigning NBA champions.

"I followed Jared since he was in high school and have always thought very highly of him. Just his makeup, his approach, his game. I've always felt like he's a guy that contributes to winning," Presti said. "I do think that with kinda the way he got on the train, his EQ is extremely high. There aren't many people that I would choose to try to assimilate into our particular team in the middle of the year, especially because the continuity issue was already very fractured because we didn't know who was playing."

Coming out of Duke, McCain was a highly coveted player. He went at the No. 16 pick of the 2024 NBA draft. After a blazing start to his NBA career that saw him jump ahead of the Rookie of the Year race, a torn meniscus ended his season prematurely in Dec. 2024. And then the start of this past season was delayed due to thumb surgery in Oct. 2025.

By the time McCain returned, he was buried on Philadelphia's depth chart. Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe became the Sixers' future starting backcourt. Eventually, that led to his early departure in a trade that shocked everybody. At his second NBA home, he slowly got more comfortable. Until he was thrown into a sink-or-swim situation due to injuries. All things considered, he floated well.

"Certainly couldn't have forecasted the situation we were going to be in in the postseason. He was very, very helpful in that," Presti said. "But he had the right mindset. To walk into a team like ours and in the right game. But I think going forward, there's a more balanced player in there and not just a guy that's going to come off and be able to hit shots like that. He really understands the game. He understands winning. He'll put his body out there."

This is how the Thunder maintain a lengthy championship window. Find young talent whose career trajectories are pointing up. Especially with the upcoming ballooning of their payroll situation. Right now, OKC is on the cusp of some roster turnover for the first time in a couple of years. That happens in the NBA business. McCain looks like he could stick around and help for the next handful of seasons, though. Heck, he's already done it once on the fly.

"I'm looking forward to a full summer with him, full training camp," Presti said. "And just seeing really how he accents our full team."

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Sam Presti reflects on trading for Jared McCain: 'He understands winning'

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