Considering how painfully close Presti was in previous seasons to a championship, all eyes were on the OKC GM in his 2024-25 end-of-season press conference. Would he break character and take a victory lap over those who doubted his spot among the league's top decision-makers?

"I think the one thing we have to do is get away from the defensive nature of trying to convince people, players and teams that there's no connection between the loads and the injuries," Presti said.