When Andrew Berry faced one of the biggest decisions in Cleveland Browns history, trading Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams, he turned to an unlikely source for advice: Oklahoma City Thunder executive Sam Presti.
It turns out that call mattered a lot.
How Sam Presti’s Advice Helped the Browns Land Jared Verse in the Myles Garrett Trade
According to Albert Breer, Presti walked Berry through the thinking behind Oklahoma City’s 2019 blockbuster trade for Paul George.
On the surface, that deal looked like a massive draft pick haul. Five first-rounders. Two additional pick swaps. But Presti told Berry the picks weren’t actually the point.
“Most folks on the outside focused on the four first-round picks and two additional first-round pick swaps Presti landed in the deal,” Breer reported. “But the reality was that OKC viewed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a player they were higher on than most, as the key.”
Everybody knows how that turned out. SGA has since won two MVPs and anchored an NBA championship team.
The picks were nice. The player was the prize.
That lesson shaped how Berry approached the Garrett trade. The Browns weren’t just going to dump their best player for a pile of future draft capital.
They wanted a real player coming back. And they held firm on that until the Los Angeles Rams finally blinked.
Browns GM Andrew Berry consulted the Myles Garrett blockbuster trade with Thunder executive Sam Presti, per @AlbertBreer.
“Presti affirmed Berry’s resolve to prioritize getting a player and not just picks, taking him through the Paul George trade of 2019. Most folks on the… pic.twitter.com/V1mDcQNlq0
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 5, 2026
The Rams had been calling persistently. According to ESPN, one source described it as a “persistent pursuit,” with LA being the only team that kept pushing for a player the Browns had called untouchable.
Cleveland’s counteroffer was clear: no deal gets done without Jared Verse included. The 25-year-old pass rusher, a 2024 first-round pick with 12 sacks and 22 tackles for loss over his first two seasons, with a solid PFSN EDGE Impact rating of 86.3 last season, had to be in the package.
Eventually, the Rams agreed. The final deal sent Garrett to Los Angeles in exchange for Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-rounder, and a 2029 third-round pick.
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Berry’s statement framed it simply: “We recognize the unexpected nature of this trade, but it opens up great opportunities for our franchise.”
Presti’s advice clearly affirmed Berry’s instinct. Don’t just chase picks. Get a player you believe in.
The Browns now have Verse, an Ohio native who was born in Dayton, plus significant draft flexibility. They are projected to hold 11 picks in the 2027 draft alone.
Meanwhile, Garrett heads to a Rams team swinging hard for another Super Bowl run. Los Angeles is hosting Super Bowl LXI at SoFi Stadium in February 2027, and they just added the best defensive player in football to chase it.
Whether Berry pulled off the next great steal, the way Presti did with SGA, remains to be seen. But the blueprint he followed seems to be a pretty good one.
