OKLAHOMA CITY — As the NBA world speculates about what Oklahoma City Thunder GM Sam Presti has up his sleeve after long-term injuries sidelined Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace, it's still too early to tell. Ty Jerome has already been linked to the Thunder as a potential reunion. The LA Clippers' need for assets makes them an option for Oklahoma City, which has a treasure trove full of future first-round picks.

However, Presti isn't in any hurry to replace the void left by Williams and Wallace's collective absences via trade, as he said during his impromptu press conference on Monday.

“As an organization, we talk a lot about the difference between reacting and responding. It's really our job to respond to these types of things. Unfortunately, we have a lot of practice responding to these things,” Presti said. “I've said this from the day I got here: there's no silver platters here. We're, as an organization, and also as a city and a community, this is what we're built for. This is the kind of thing that gets thrown at you here, and you just plow right through it. You walk through punches, and you step over roadblocks.

“And I think our guys are ready to do that. But it's certainly disappointing. I don't want to sugarcoat that for anybody. But I think it's inside of all of us that we're ready to take the next step. Figure out what's next.”

Only time will tell what that next step is for Thunder GM Sam Presti. In the meantime, Oklahoma City will see how the Thunder respond from within, as players such as Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, and Kenrich Williams are positioned for increased roles.

“These types of situations are where you really see the connection between a team and a group of athletes,” Presti added. “I'm very confident that as we talk the next steps, we're going to learn a lot about each other. We'll learn a lot about our community. But I know how that's going to end up. It's going to be a continuous love affair. So, we'll wrap our arms around these guys. We'll get them back. We'll get them healthy. We got a lot of basketball to play ahead of us. And we got to put it together.”

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The Thunder improved to 4-0 in their first game without Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace. Despite losing Alex Caruso to an ankle injury in the first half of a 125-114 win against the Phoenix Suns, Mitchell led the team with a career-high 30 points. He earned a spot in head coach Mark Daigneault's starting lineup, a role that could be permanent for the third-year guard.

Thunder GM Sam Presti can apply for a Disabled Player Exception worth roughly $14 million after losing Williams to a fractured fibula and a dislocated left ankle. Add some of the future first-round picks Presti has stacked over the years, and it should be enough to land a quality player before this year's trade deadline.

If the Thunder take this route, the player has to be in the final year of their contract. Grizzlies' Ty Jerome fits those conditions, and he's making less than $14 million this season. The same goes for Clippers forwards Derrick Jones Jr. and Rui Hachimura. New Orleans Pelicans forward Herbert Jones is another potential trade candidate linked to the Thunder after Williams and Wallace were injured.