The Sacramento Kings aren’t going to be very good next season. That fact isn’t a hotly contested debate within the fan base, but rather a forgone conclusion. Even the most ardent supporters of the current regime can’t find any realistic path to the playoffs, while the vast majority of fans place them somewhere in the 24 – 30 win range.

Flailing franchises such as the Kings usually find some relief in their terrible finish by competing in a championship designed for bottom-dwellers: the NBA draft. In a normal, non-catastrophic situation, Sacramento would be rewarded with a high first round pick, their placement determined by the lottery, and a second rounder corresponding to the order of record: from worst to best. Of course, the Kings always being the exception and never the rule, surrendered the rights to their first round selection to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for cap space back in 2015. Everyone knows they don’t own their pick.

That topic has dominated the conversation when pondering Sacramento’s performance in the 2018-2019 campaign, as well it should. Giving up a top-7 pick is going to be the most devastating transaction in recent history: possibly more so than the firing of Mike Malone or letting Isaiah Thomas walk for a bottle of Teriyaki sauce. Sadly, while the worst of the pain can be found in the gift of a lottery pick from a rebuilding team, misery can also be found in the second round. In a bit of an ironic twist, the 76ers also control the Kings’ second round pick, although they weren’t involved in the original trade, nor was Vlade Divac.

Back in July of 2013, newly-named General Manager Pete D’Alessandro traded a 2016 second rounder and the rights to swap 2019 second rounders to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Small Forward Luc Mbah a Moute. Fans were mostly supportive of the move, although Luc wasn’t in a Sacramento uniform for long, as he was dealt for the failed experiment that was Derrick Williams just four months later. Milwaukee ended up with the 36^th overall pick in 2016, snagging eventual Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdon with the selection.

One year after that initial deal occurred, Brooklyn Nets Head Coach, Jason Kidd, attempted to grab power within his organization by demanding control over the Front Office. The ownership group declined to grant him that amount of influence within the franchise, creating a rift that couldn’t be mended. The Milwaukee Bucks, dissatisfied with their own coaching situation, sent a 2015 second round pick (eventually turning into Pat Connaughton), and their ownership of the 2019 Sacramento swap to secure the coaching rights of Jason Kidd.

Four months later, the rights to the pick were headed to a new city, its final resting place as of this moment. In a move to get down to the league-maximum 15-man roster, the Brooklyn Nets sent guard Marquis Teague and the 2019 second round swap to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for guard Casper Ware, who they later waived. The Sixers gained the rights to the better of the Bucks and Kings 2019 second rounders, with Sacramento receiving the worse of the two.  

An initial trade that occurred five years ago with a different management team will cost the Kings a dozen or more spots in the second round: a consequence they can ill afford to bare due to their current situation. There’s more than a small chance that Sacramento hands over the 1^st and 31^st picks to the Sixers in exchange for the the 48th overall selection: a feeling akin to getting shot in the gut and then slapped in the face.

Next June is going to hurt. It’s going to hurt badly. However, one small bit of solace can be found in the multitude of second round picks that Vlade Divac has managed to accrue. The Kings own nine of them over the next three years:

While nowhere near the value of a lottery pick, the unpredictable nature of teams’ futures could turn into a diamond in the rough for the Kings. Minnesota, Detroit, Miami, or Memphis might crash and burn over the next few years, possibly resulting in the 32^nd or 33^rd overall pick heading Sacramento’s way. Due to poor decision-making and asset management, the Kings don’t control their first or second round draft picks in the 2019 draft. Let’s hope they can take similar advantage of another team in the near future.