Sam Presti says OKC Thunder isn't 'entitled to start on third base' in NBA title race

At times, it’s tough to tell if Sam Presti revels in expectations or despises them. It might be best put this way: He dislikes the word’s origin.

As the Thunder general manager noted Wednesday during his preseason news conference, it’s built on “expect,” which to him insinuates being given something, which can only expect a scoff from Presti.

And yet, he spent plenty of Wednesday appreciating what expectations can birth: Possibilities, realities Presti could create or build toward. The emphasis is on could. That might be where the beauty lies for a man who is seemingly woken up in the morning by the possibility of having built a second contender less than a decade after the first.

“The difference is that external expectations are things that some people think should happen,” Presti said, “and possibilities are things that we feel could happen, but we have a lot of respect for how hard it is for those things to take place.

“We don't think we're entitled to start on third base.”

Despite that being where the Thunder’s been mocked after winning 57 games , Presti, a noted Ken Griffey Jr. appreciator, isn’t trying to come out swinging for the home run everyone thinks OKC is. Scratch that — the home run of a team many know that the Thunder has to be having patched up its issues from a season ago.

He seems as willing to breathe in every part of the process, every chapter of a layered season, before taking a step back to consider the final product.

More: Looking back at OKC Thunder GM Sam Presti's op-ed five years later

OKC Thunder's Sam Presti said roster will need time

Presti sounded awfully close to the way he did a year ago when talking about the big picture. The same isms lined his long-winded session.

Despite as much anticipation as there’s been for a Thunder team since the Kevin Durant days, he’s settled on viewing this season as a blank canvas. No expectations, no idea of what it could be and no preconceived ideas of how guys will fit together.

A perfectly clean slate for coach and mad scientist Mark Daigneault to empty and fill new beakers.

Data will get collected, and the Thunder won’t be apologetic if it distorts any regular-season prophecy.

“We're going to need some time with this particular group, especially because we're not trying to wedge those guys in or have assumptions about how they're going to fit with certain players,” Presti said of OKC’s new additions. “We kind of have to allow that to take its course, and as a result I think our continuity will not be great early, but if you look at continuity in the NBA, continuity generally shows up, or lack thereof, early in the year.”

“There's certain things that we're going to have to confront, even if that means not getting the immediate benefits or the numbers might not look particularly good, but ultimately we're going to have to get good at addressing these particular situations, issues, whatever it might be.”

That means possibly playing Cason Wallace alongside Lu Dort and Alex Caruso in an alternate reality, or trotting out Isaiah Hartenstein-Chet Holmgren lineups until the numbers pile up. It means throwing things at the wall that’ll be head scratching for a team that could very be atop the Western Conference for a chunk of the year.

Anything to attain the possibility.

“We recognize that in order to be exceptional,” Presti said, “in order to be that team, you have to be willing to be an exception, and for us that means staying curious, staying open, knowing -- you can't find it if you're not looking and turning every page.”

More: OKC Thunder mailbag: What lessons has Sam Presti taken from Durant-Westbrook era?

Sam Presti offers NBA Christmas schedule thoughts

Thunder fans, outraged by not being included in the NBA’s Christmas festivities, were defended with honor Wednesday.

Presti gave enough thought to the omission that he considered how many Christmases were spent watching Thunder basketball. Nine games in 16 years. More time spent playing that day than not.

“I don't think there's another small-market team that's played on Christmas more than we have,” Presti said.

Still, Presti labeled the decision foolish in the most eloquent fashion to date.

“I think there’s a little bit of Hanlon's razor in there — and I say that to not be on opening night and not be on Christmas Day, have the second leading MVP vote getter and also the No. 1 seed. Sure.

“But I also kind of like it because I think whoever is making those decisions — I think it's probably the league —  I think they're kind of looking more at the age and saying, 'Well, this is too young.' Maybe they don't think we're this or we're that. I like that challenge.”

It's a decision which, again, Presti could swallow with OKC's holiday history. But for as much grace as he tends to show, it's not a decision he seemed to take kindly to.

More: Which OKC Thunder games will be on national TV next season? We break down the schedule

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Sam Presti says OKC Thunder isn't 'entitled to start on third base' in NBA title race