How Sam Presti's 'Belief' in Dillon Jones Gives the OKC Thunder Rookie Confidence

After being selected in the first round of the 204 NBA Draft, Dillon Jones has found confidence in his general manager's faith in his abilities.

Dillon Jones is pictured during the Thunder media day at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. / NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Despite boasting a talented roster already loaded with an MVP candidate, two rising stars and a number of valuable role players, the Oklahoma City Thunder traded back into the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft to select Dillon Jones.

A four-year player at Weber State, Jones is listed at 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds. The former Wildcats' standout averaged 20.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and two steals per game while shooting 48.9% from the field and 32.4% from beyond the arc as a senior.

Following his final year Weber State, OKC selected Jones with the No. 26 overall pick in the first round. Despite being a well-rounded player who seems to have many of the skills that Sam Presti and Mark Daigneault are looking for in a draft prospect, Jones playing on such a deep roster may prevent the rookie from seeing much time on the court during his first season in the NBA.

Even if he doesn't see much action in 2024-25, the Columbia, SC, product seems to be content with the knowledge that Oklahoma City's General Manager had enough confidence in Jones to select him in the first round of the draft.

"It's also about the process of it," Jones said. "Sam (Presti) could have pursued me like he did in the draft, but then like, I might not play this year. That doesn't mean he doesn't have confidence in me, it just might not be my time yet, and you've just got to be mature enough to understand that. The biggest part I get from that, and the confidence I get from that is: somebody in the NBA, in a front office role, has belief in me as a player. Wether thats this year, next year, three years from now, we might not now when. It may never come, but just the fact that he has that type of belief in me, that's where you take from it. ... Bond with your teammates, do what's asked of you, you know, as a rookie. You know, just try to be there where you can, fill in the gaps where you need to be and obviously, being on a good team, my teammates are going to make my job completely, way easier. So, I'm excited for it."

Really great stuff here from Dillon Jones on perspective entering the league and more: pic.twitter.com/24d4GsXzoY

— Derek Parker (@DParkOK) September 30, 2024

Very few draft analysts and reporters expected Jones to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft, making Presti's decision to trade up to select the Weber State product even more of an indicator that the Thunder's GM has belief in Jones' abilities.

To earn significant time in OKC's rotation, Jones will need to improve as a 3-point shooter. While he did show flashes of being a decent perimeter scorer in the summer league, Jones will still need to work with Chip Engelland to become a more consistent shooter before becoming a contributor in the Modern Frontier.

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