In many ways, Oklahoma City Thunder GM Sam Presti addressed his team’s shortcomings in the 2026 NBA Draft, following their 4-3 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals. Amid speculation that the Thunder had eyes on moving up in this year’s draft, Presti traded Aaron Wiggins for future draft capital, which is the kind of move that will not be available during the season when Oklahoma City will begin to conduct business under the rules of a second-apron tax offender.
Before All-NBA forward Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams’ respective max deals kick in for the 2026-27 season, the Thunder traded picks to land Jared McCain ahead of this year’s trade deadline. Then, after trading Wiggins for two future second-round picks, it gave Presti enough roster space to draft two prospects who could impact the team during their rookie campaigns.
Aday Mara, a 7-foot-4 defensive-minded center coming off an NCAA national title and a Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year award, was linked to the Thunder weeks before the 2026 NBA Draft. However, given that the big man was rising in various mock drafts, the Thunder weren’t sure if he’d be available for them at the No. 12 pick. But Tuesday’s draft worked out for Oklahoma City. The 2025 champions drafted their guy, who is expected to grow into another rim protector to complement Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein next season.
All-Star Victor Wembanyama got the best of the Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals. It might not have been the kind of dominant performance fans anticipated, but in the end, it was enough to close out the Thunder’s 2025-26 season as Oklahoma City struggled to contain the Spurs’ phenom. Drafting Mara is a step in the right direction.
While Hartenstein, who will enter the summer with a team option worth $28.5 million for next season, could either opt-in to one more year with the Thunder or restructure an extension during the offseason. Either way, Oklahoma City drafted Hartenstein’s replacement for the future. However, given how well Hartenstein held his own against Wemby and the Spurs, the Thunder are hoping to have both to compete against the defending Western Conference champions, as OKC looks to regain its throne in 2026-27.
Plus, with the expected return of a healthy Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell, whose breakout season was marred by injuries throughout the playoffs, back in the fold, we could see another dominant start to the regular season, which would be their third straight. After a 15-5 start through the first 20 regular-season games in 2024-25, the Thunder went on a 15-game win streak. Then, as the league’s defending champions, Oklahoma City made NBA history with a 24-1 mark out of the gates of the 2025-26 regular season.
Still, beefing up the Thunder’s frontcourt was only one of the many ways Presti made the right decisions heading into Tuesday’s draft.
Thunder trade up to No. 16 pick for Bennett Stirtz
The Thunder’s eyes on Bennett Stirtz led them to trade up from their No. 17 selection to the Grizzlies’ No. 16 pick to get the guy they wanted. The Thunder attached two second-round picks to their 17th overall selection to seal the deal, earning them one of the better shooters of his draft class in Iowa’s Stirtz.
Similar to Thunder GM Sam Presti drafting Hartenstein’s future replacement in Mara, you can argue he also selected the shooter who will ultimately fill Isaiah Joe’s role on the team. Joe shot at a career-best 42.3% clip last season, leading the Thunder as the most efficient 3-point shooter throughout the regular season. However, Isaiah’s defensive shortcomings left him out of coach Mark Daigneault’s rotation in the Thunder’s Western Conference Finals series against Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs.
The Spurs, loaded with shifty guards who can create off the dribble, including Stephon Castle, De’Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, and rookie Dylan Harper, had Daigneault lean on defensive-minded guards such as Alex Caruso, Cason Wallace, and Lu Dort to complement All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Not assuming that Joe’s lack of playing time resulted in the Thunder drafting his replacement.
However, Stirtz offers plenty of upside on the offensive end, including his play-making, reliable shooting, and one-on-one defense. His catch-and-shoot numbers from beyond the arc also caught Thunder Sam Presti’s eyes, as Bennett drained 65 threes on 49% shooting across 37 games last season. Stirtz also made 52% of contested threes in his last season at Iowa.
Couple that with his pick-and-roll play-making abilities, and the Thunder have a guard who, ideally, blends in alongside 3-point shooters such as Jared McCain, Ajay Mitchell, Caruso, Wallace, and Jaylin Williams as a new addition to what’s already a very deep Thunder bench.
Thunder rookie Aday Mara ‘excited’ for Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama
The Thunder and the Spurs turned into a full-blown NBA rivalry in 2025-26. After the Spurs handed the Thunder three losses amidst 12 days in December, they humbled the defending champions after a historic start to the regular season. All of a sudden, talk of the 2025 champion beating the Warriors’ all-time best 73-9 regular-season record in 2016 subsided, and reality soon kicked in, as the Spurs proved to be the defending champions’ number one contender.
Then, they gradually climbed the Western Conference standings, grabbing the second-best record before dethroning the Thunder in a hard-fought best-of-7 series ending in Game 7. Thunder GM Sam Presti vowed to bring most of the roster back, spelling speculation of a potential Chet Holmgren trade in the wake of his four-point performance in Game 7. Instead, Presti doubled down on his belief in his team and added reinforcements, starting with Aday Mara with the 12th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Mara, standing at 7-foot-3, is not only the tallest Thunder player on the roster, but is also viewed as the team’s future center, who’s entering a rivalry against Wembanyama, the NBA’s most promising star, and the Spurs, which is a challenge he’s very much embracing before his rookie season.
“I think it’s gonna take time and adjustments, but I’m excited to play against him,” Mara said. “Obviously, to play in the NBA. But I feel like I’m going to play against him a lot if it’s in the NBA or for the national team.”
“Being able to play with Chet, I think we can play together. And I think that could be great for the team. Talking about rim protection”
– Aday Mara excited to add to the Thunder already stacked defensive team. Particularly sharing the floor with Chet pic.twitter.com/tMYkTAcVt9
— The Daniel Bell© (@BasketballGuruD) June 24, 2026
Mara, who plays center for the Spanish national basketball team in international play, looks forward to joining forces with Holmgren and the Thunder.
“Trying to help the team as much as I can, and just try to get better and better every year or every month,” Mara added. “Being able to play with Chet, I think we can play together. I think that could be great for the team. Talking about rim protection, but, obviously, defense, in my game, I feel is going to be super important.”
Sam Presti and the Thunder will get their first look at first-round picks Aday Mara and Bennett Stirtz in this year’s summer league.
