Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti pulled off a cheeky move this offseason that immediately put a Western Conference rival in a bind.
The Thunder made a seemingly inconspicuous transaction on Saturday by signing Denver Nuggets free agent Spencer Jones to a 2-year, $12 million offer sheet. Jones played a key role in the Nuggets’ rotation last season, particularly when Aaron Gordon was out with injury.
With Jones being a restricted free agent, the Nuggets can match any offer for his services within 48 hours of him signing an offer sheet. But some astute observers noticed that Denver was also just about $4 million away from breaching the dreaded second apron threshold, which would severely limit the team’s roster flexibility.
Several fans and media members called Presti a devious genius for the move.
Sam Presti is running absolute circles around every other team in the NBA. He has handcuffed the Nuggets who either find a sign and trade team for Pwat, let Jones go, or realize we have to pay both… in only 48 hours. Just brutal. https://t.co/UbV8UckCZz
— Jokic Burner (@MikesMajorTakes) July 25, 2026
The NBA is so wild because Sam Presti can hit a button and put the whole Nuggets offseason on life support.
— Damien Peters (@DamienPetersNBA) July 26, 2026
Loved what Presti did to Denver with the Spencer Jones offer sheet, never understood why NBA teams are always so eager to help everyone else out. This was an Auerbach-like old-school cutthroat “we are trying to F over a competitor” move. And OKC actually needed a D wing.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) July 26, 2026
Presti trades Dort to get under second apron, picks up more second rounders for future deals, uses cap room to generate the tax payer exception, then uses that to apply pressure to Denver to target a need against a team that has luxury tax constraints because of ownership.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) July 25, 2026
Sam Presti is a savage. This is crazy. https://t.co/rVAegYkVKo
— The Cooler (@The__Cooler) July 26, 2026
If the Nuggets matched and went into the second apron, the team wouldn’t be allowed to make sign-and-trade deals. That’s significant because Denver is currently still far apart in its negotiations with free agent Peyton Watson, who’s reportedly seeking north of $25 million per year.
The Nuggets would either lose the ability to recoup any assets for Watson in a sign-and-trade or give up Jones to one of their biggest rivals.
The Thunder are already adding 7’3″ Michigan center Aday Mara to their roster and getting 2025 first-round forward Thomas Sorber back from injury next season. The pair join a big man rotation featuring Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Jaylin Williams.
Oklahoma City doesn’t need Jones in the slightest. But Presti sure knows that Denver does.
The clock is ticking on the Nuggets, who have yet to decide on Jones’ offer sheet as of writing.
UPDATE: The Nuggets on Sunday opted to match Jones’ offer sheet, sending the team into the second apron.
