Sam Presti Explains the NBA Aprons as Thunder Deal Lu Dort to Stay Below the Line
Oklahoma City Thunder GM Sam Presti broke down the NBA's apron system to the Daily Thunder this offseason, explaining its intent to prevent permanent spending advantages — a philosophy made concrete when the Thunder traded beloved defender Lu Dort to the Atlanta Hawks to drop below the second apron.
Sam Presti Explains the NBA Aprons as Thunder Deal Lu Dort to Stay Below the Line
Few executives understand the NBA's new financial landscape better than Sam Presti, and few teams have felt its pressure more directly this offseason than the Oklahoma City Thunder. So when Brandon Rahbar of the Daily Thunder asked Presti for his take on the league's much-debated apron system, the answer carried extra weight. It came in the same summer Oklahoma City traded away one of the most beloved players in franchise history partly to stay on the right side of those rules.
What the Aprons Were Built to Do
Presti started by explaining why the aprons spark so much argument. In his view, everyone who weighs in on the topic is speaking from their own experience with the rules, which naturally leads to strong and conflicting opinions.
He then brought the debate back to one basic question: what were the aprons supposed to accomplish? As Presti sees it, the goal was to level the playing field against franchises with a major financial edge over the rest of the league. He pointed out that spending gaps between teams had reached roughly three to one, and that the biggest spenders could stay at the top of that range for a decade or longer. The aprons, he said, are meant to stop a team from making spending its primary method of building a roster.
Sam Presti discussing the NBA aprons: highly recommended viewing.
— Brandon Rahbar (@BrandonRahbar) September 24, 2026
“It’s giving everybody the same opportunity to make a choice to push in and spend aggressively if they feel they have a team that warrants that. But not everyone can do that, but the choice is there.” https://t.co/83GFcnLL42 pic.twitter.com/nxqaP3baF1
Presti also noted that the rules were phased in gradually rather than all at once, and he pointed to what happened in the window before they took full effect. Several teams already paying the luxury tax went out and landed stars: Boston acquired Jrue Holiday, Phoenix added Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant, the Clippers traded for James Harden, Dallas brought in Kyrie Irving, and Milwaukee landed Damian Lillard. According to Presti, none of those deals would be possible under today's rules. That, he argued, is exactly the point: a team that is already spending heavily should not be able to keep piling on talent.
Choice, Not Punishment
Presti was just as clear about what the aprons are not meant to do. They don't prevent any team, in any market, from deciding it has a special group worth paying for. He described how a franchise might recognize a rare window in its history and choose to spend aggressively for several years, knowing it may not have a team like that again for a long time.
That decision is still available to everyone, Presti said. What has changed is that no team can stay at that spending level for 15 years anymore. In his framing, the system gives every franchise the same chance to push its chips in when the moment is right, while making sure no one can buy their way to permanent contention. Once a team reaches the apron, it simply can't keep adding talent. Presti suggested that this simple idea often gets lost in how the rules are discussed publicly.
The Dort Trade Puts the Philosophy Into Practice
Oklahoma City's actions this summer show those principles at work. The Thunder earlier this summer sent Lu Dort to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team trade with the Dallas Mavericks. The move shed enough salary to get the Thunder below the second apron.
In the deal, Atlanta receives Dort along with Ryan Nembhard from Dallas. The Mavericks get Zaccharie Risacher and a protected 2027 second-round pick from Atlanta. Oklahoma City collects a 2027 second-rounder originally belonging to Chicago, plus Atlanta's second-round picks in 2031 and 2032.
For the Thunder, it caps a busy offseason of turning rotation players into future assets. Earlier deals sending Aaron Wiggins to Atlanta and Isaiah Joe to Detroit brought back two second-round picks each, giving Oklahoma City seven new picks this summer. The front office had exercised Dort's $17.7 million team option earlier in the offseason, choosing to trade him for value rather than let him walk as a free agent.
It's a tough goodbye. Dort went undrafted in 2019 and spent all seven of his NBA seasons in Oklahoma City, growing into one of the league's most feared perimeter defenders and a key contributor to the Thunder's 2024–25 championship. He averaged 8.3 points and 3.6 rebounds last season.
Winners on Every Side
Atlanta now pairs the 27-year-old Dort with Dyson Daniels, giving the Hawks two former All-Defensive wings who can make life miserable for opposing scorers. Nembhard, a 5-foot-11 point guard, earned his way into the Dallas rotation as an undrafted rookie last season, averaging 6.6 points and 5.3 assists. His 23-assist game against Chicago in April set a Mavericks rookie record, passing Jason Kidd. He is the younger brother of Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard.
Dallas, meanwhile, bets on a bounce-back from Risacher. The 2024 No. 1 pick made the All-Rookie First Team after averaging 12.6 points per game, but dipped to 9.6 points in an injury-affected second season, appearing in 67 games. He joins Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flaggto give the Mavericks three former top overall picks, the most on any roster in the league.
For the Thunder, the trade is Presti's explanation in real life. Oklahoma City can still choose to spend big on its title core, but under the apron rules it can't do that while also holding on to every valuable piece. Staying below the line meant choosing, and this time the choice was Dort.