Sam Presti’s expertise is now helping blockbuster NFL trades get over the line.
Albert Breer of The MMQB dove into the negotiations that led the Cleveland Browns to trade Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams earlier in the week, and revealed that Browns GM Andrew Berry consulted a few outside names before making the deal. One of them was Presti, the Oklahoma City Thunder GM with whom he is friendly.
Presti affirmed Berry’s decision to pursue a combination of a player and picks instead of just draft capital. The Browns have been open about how important it was for them to be able to acquire Jared Verse as part of the package they got in return.
Presti used the example of the trade he made that sent Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2019. At the time, much of the attention fell on the draft picks the Thunder received in that deal, but the player they landed, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, is now a back-to-back NBA MVP. Perhaps not coincidentally, Gilgeous-Alexander recently described Presti as the best GM ever.
Verse probably will not become the franchise-changing player Gilgeous-Alexander did. If any of Presti’s trade magic rubs off on Berry, however, this deal might work out for the Browns after all.
