I can’t think of a more meaningless regular season game than the last matchup in the Orlando Bubble with no playoff or draft lottery implications. If any of you watched the Sacramento Kings vs. Los Angeles Lakers today, you need better hobbies. I need better hobbies.
I’ll do my best to recap all the unimportant action for you here.
Keeping up with Bubble Tradition, the Sacramento Kings gave up a 40-point first quarter to the Los Angeles Lakers. They also allowed the Lakers to shoot 8-14 from beyond the arc, so if you’ve watched the Kings at all in Orlando, it was very much more of the same. The Kings scored 30 points of their own, with Bogdan Bogdanovic leading the way with 12.
The Kings came out much stronger in the 2nd quarter with Buddy Hield looking a lot more like the player we had expected to see in Orlando. Hield dropped 17 first half points on the Lakers, including 5-8 shooting from 3.
Hield was money in the 2nd quarter, and along with Jabari Parker’s 11 point, 5 rebound first half contributions, the Kings managed a 20 point swing in the game score. Sacramento was down 10 at the end of the first, but took a 66-56 lead into the half.
The Kings continued their onslaught vs. the Lakers throughout the 3rd quarter with LeBron James and a few of his other teammates taking the 2nd half off to rest up for the playoff run.
Sacramento retained the lead throughout a 4th quarter that quickly turned into garbage time for both teams. I apologize for not having any meaningful takeaways from watching the Kings third team beat up on Jared Dudley, Devontae Cacok, Talen Horton-Tucker, Quinn Cook, and J.R. Smith.
Kings 136, Lakers 122. Yay?
So what do we do now?
Got a match?
Who would ever think one could be sad in purple?
Woohoo! Two wins in a row to close out the bubble and set us up for next season!!!
Don’t need to go back and watch the tape for this one. The Kings beat one of the best teams in the West, all of the “growing” and “lessons” during the bubble are finally starting to pay off. Better extend Walton’s contract now.
No need to apologize, Tony. This was an uninspiring bubble season for the Kings…
Thanks for sitting through the game and writing this up 🙂
…And so it begins
On the one hand, I don’t blame Hield for being frustrated. On the other, they can’t keep a guy around who constantly voices his frustrations through the media. Trade him for future salary relief and an minor asset or two.
Yup. That is where I’m at as well. Cut bait.
At least we have a “player’s coach” that will get along with the players.
Some of these guys think too highly of themselves, which is not all on them part of the problem is an incompetent FO. I like Buddy, but he is not even a surefire starter. Great shooter while being a liability at everything else. I am completely open to moving him, but his value may be too low at this time. I would be fine with Buddy for Horford/Thybulle.
Ya I agree 100% – everything but his shooting is worrying. He doesn’t seem to know what to do sometimes so he just dribbles into trouble. Dave knew how to mask his flaws but Luke seems to highlight them.
This would be trades I would happily accept.
Thybulle is special on defense. I’d trade Buddy and Holmes for Horford and Thybulle.
this was a dumb idea. Horford is already 34 and his contract is one of the worst in the nba. I do not want to trade for Horford under any trade scenario.
Buddy is absolutely a starter on a team that knows what he can/can’t do.
He falls well into a broad group of good players that are good starters in the right situation. Guys that can be good 4-7 guys for a competitive team and whether they start or not depends on the rest of the roster and system.
Seriously. It’s not frickin hard to play both sides here: “Well you guys know me, I’m a competitor and I want to start and I AM a starting player in this league….but I’ll do whatever it takes for this team to win” The problem is, I think he’d rather start and lose, than be a 6th man and win. Definitely on board with trading him before it gets any worse.
Please trade buddy. Get a piece back that fits in some other way. Keep Bogi and Bazemore. Give Justin James end of bench SG minutes next season.
Bogi is better then Buddy.
Perhaps the Kings most consistent personnel move is getting as little value from their players as possible. Whether waiting until they have no choice but to trade them, or waiting until they have no trade value.
Yup, just like sitting on an unhappy Rudy Gay, not trading him, let letting him walk after he got injured and sat for the remainder of his contract.
Or, just trading them and getting little back….e.g., Isaiah Thomas.
To be fair, it has been a massive drop off from what he was producing last season.
I don’t think many were calling for him to be traded this time last year.
Your comment is 100% valid (historically accurate). Probably not one many envisioned for Buddy a year ago.
I’m not sure that’s really true. He was asked to do more things he isn’t really good at (basically creation), but the things he doesn’t well he did just as well of better this year. For example, he shot 47% on spot up 3s. Compared to 42% last season. If you look at his numbers the real stand out different in his shooting is that a significantly lower percentage of his shots were assisted. Meaning he was having to/trying to create his own shot more. Really, the big number difference is that last season and the season before, he was a killer shooting 3s on the fast break and secondary break. Now, since they aren’t emphasizing the break, he isn’t getting those opportunities.
So, I guess what I’m saying is his effectiveness dropped a bit this year, but I think we and NBA FOs know who Buddy is and nothing really happened this year to change that.
So, I think his value is decreased from last off-season for two reasons: 1. His new contract. and 2. The Kings loss of leverage due to his clear discontent.
I don’t think his value is down meaningfully because of his 2019-2020 performance.
Yeah I’m fine with trading him, but not if we’re going to sell low. He’s a decent 3rd option on a quality team. And if he’s willing to accept a 6th man role, and play within his strengths… he could be elite.
Though I think there’s going to be a wide range of opinions on what “selling low” would mean.
Walton needs to reverse course on the turning Buddy into a facilitator and make him a catch and shoot guy and have him dribble less. Pretty much how GS uses Klay. Move him into the starting lineup and have Bogi lead the bench where he has been most effective.
I here you! It seems so obvious. Set 25 screens for buddy as he sprints around the court looking for a window to shoot a 3 pointer. Let the 4 other guys on the court who are all better facilitators than him facilitate one of the best 3pt shooters alive.
it’s a no brainer.
you’d think.
BAHAHAHAHA
And that’s a wrap on yet another satisfying Kings season!
Pathetic. Like, we’ve been doing that. For 14 years. Since Luke was washing Shaq’s jockstrap. Fire that dullard now.
Luke wishes he could wash that jockstrap. He’s not even qualified for that
LOL. We’ve been sticking around longer than you, Luke.
And we WILL stick around longer than you.
I’m not sure anymore.
We’ve been patient for the last 7 years.
Fuck you Luke.
F off Luke
This is how the season ends
This is how the season ends
This is how the season ends
Not with a bang but a whimper
Kings season dies in darkness.
you forgot the best stat: Nemanja, 13 dimes.
Worth $1.30 – yeah, that’s about right.
Would love to see an in-depth off-season article:
If you had to keep one, and only one, of Buddy or Bogi who would it be and why?
Neither. There is not a player on the current roster that will be on the Kings next playoff roster. Unfortunately, the current front office is incapable of blowing this roster up and rebuilding. Rock, meet hard place.
Sadly have to agree with this. This roster doesn’t need a rebuild; this entire organization, at least the basketball side, needs a complete demolition followed by a nuclear strike.
The problem with letting Bogi walk for nothing is it just frees up cap space for Vlade to overpay for the likes of Jeff Green or Joakim Noah. Next overpriced aging veteran…come on down!
Yeah, the organization doesn’t know how to build, nor rebuild.
They only know how to debuild.
That’s pretty optimistic to assume the Kings will ever make the playoffs again.
My 2 cents. Trade Buddy.
1) Bogi will be cheaper and has a better all around game, IMO.
2) Letting Bogi walk for nothing is bat shit stupid
3) Waiting for a sign and trade of Bogi in RFA only lets the Kings get a return from one NBA team. Pickings will be slim. You might a box of rocks and a trade exception.
4) Trading Buddy lets you deal with 29 other teams. You’d likely get a better return.
Again, this all assumes that you can keep only one player. If that is the case, keep Bogi from an asset management perspective.
I would let Bogi go before I overpay for him. Nothing against him, he just does not fit the timeline for the next Kings playoff team. Unless you can sign him on the cheap and flip him for assets later, I don’t see the point.
Oh, I agree, but I still feel he’ll be cheaper than Buddy…overpay and all. I really don’t see teams paying out big money this free agency with the unknowns of COVID. That is why I think the Kings may be able to keep Bogi on the relative cheaper side of things.
If it he is borderline expensive, it’s still better to match than let him walk for nothing. If it is a sign and trade, at least get good value for him and not a bunch of bullshit exceptions and cash.
You guys fight between Bogi and Buddy. I’m just hoping they retain DQJ, or even realize he’s RFA this offseason.
Keep Bogi over Buddy. Hield is obviously the better shooter but this year has proven he’s not much else. Bogi at least can be a facilitator while keeping some of the shooting that Buddy provides. Defense needs to improve but is better than Buddy’s. With the basically non-existent incoming coming into the NBA right now Bogi’s contract would probably be cheaper too (might be wishful thinking there).
Trade Buddy this off season, keep Bogi till we can flip him for other assets as well when the league has a better idea where the money situation is going. I like both of them, but along with the FO there needs to be changes to the product on the floor. Unless it really is all about the coach.
Bogi can be your starting 2 next year and gracefully transition in to a super 6 man if a better 2 guard is acquired at some point over the next 4 seasons.
I think your second sentence gets at the point. The Kings building a good team, much less a contender, is going to take a series of smart moves that depend upon actually getting value from their assets. Even if you don’t see Bogdan being part of the next good Kings team, you don’t just let him walk. You have to get value for him. The Kings have to start thinking multiple moves ahead. They aren’t one move from being good. Letting Bogdan walk so they can, what, have more cap space for a FA? That isn’t going to help them progress. They have to take advantage of things like team-control/RFA and a potentially depressed market due to COVID cap. They have to start looking into the future at things like two potentially strong draft classes and how teams will be looking to clear cap space next deadline/offseason to make a run at the potentially historic 2021 FA class (guys the Kings have no chance at luring). The have to start looking at where other teams are in their needs and process to see if there are chances to get teams to pony up a bit more in trades (ie, The Nets/ immediate championship window, The Bulls potentially looking for stability, The Wolves looking for good fits around DLo & Towns, etc.). They need stop looking to FA to overpay for (potentially) high level impact players and focus more on trades and the draft. Throwing a ton of money at the Mathews, Lavines, and Porters of the world isn’t going to turn the tides. MAYBE once all the other pieces are in place and the cap sheet is relatively clean, THEN you can think of overpaying for that perfect role player fit. But they aren’t anywhere close to that point.
They need to stop acting like a team that’s one move away and start acting like a team that understands it’s going to take multiple moves, probably a cycling of multiple players, and a couple seasons to realize a plan that will put them in position to be consistently competitive.
EDIT: And so much more:
The have to start looking to non-traditional means of acquiring talent, like Euro FAs (the Ingles and Mellis of the world) and scouring the G-League for talent (like Wood, Boucher, etc.) and making sure they have to roster space to acquire it. They probably have to take some low-risk high upside chances on guys like Jontay Porter.
keeping Bogi is a must, I think. need his playmaking. Hield can be effective off the bench. his contract is not tradable right now.
I think his contract is tradable to a contender that needs his outside shooting. Philly is the one. It’s likely gonna take the Kings eating Horford’s deal, but I should come with some quality compensation. Include a pick and a prospect and pull the trigger.
I would imagine Buddy is pretty tradeable. He is a historically good 3pt shooter with a high motor and durable. It would be a fair bet to say there are probably several if not many teams that think Walton is an idiot for not being able to build on his breakout last season, and would be confident they could get the best of Vlade in a deal.
I think you are spot on.
I’ll take that deal! Horford would probably bring a lot of intangibles to this team. A future pick, a prospect and horford with all of his intangibles in exchange for no intangibles. Plus Vlade already wanted Horford. Make the deal!
Intangibles mean very little if the top of the organization is rotten to the core.
We had plenty of guys who did not move the needle/could not help to overcome the trickle (pour?) down effect of organizational dysfunction.
We’re so tangled up in ourselves, we need someone with untangibles.
interesting. there is some chatter about that idea on the internet already. Horford could be a nice addition. although he is getting older and you wonder how he will look on the last year of his contract, I think bringing Horford could help put the Kings on a path that values ball movement. Perhaps Hield’s contract is tradeable because he’ll be in his prime during the last year of his contract. one more thought, could Horford be a mentor for Giles?
I actually like the idea of Horford more than most. But the entire point would be about what assets you could get in addition to him.
ð¯
i would be forced to take Bogi in that situation because of all our guards Fox and Bogi are the only 2 that can facilitate. CoJo has terrible court vision, Yogi only wants to shoot. Buddy can’t dribble.
Good riddance to this King’s season and team. In all my years of being a fan, I’ve never felt more apathetic and done with this franchise.
I wish I could find the finished standings in the bubble. It looks like even the favored teams have only won 3 games? None came in hot, except the outside the bubble play in teams. The Kings could score enough points, but could not defend. I’d draft the exceptional/inspirational defender to add to the mix next year.
https://stats.nba.com/standings/
Western Conference Standings Bubble Win-Loss
Well…
Just pick one of Bogi or Buddy and let them be the 30-36 mpg SG! Tired of this. If Luke is committing to run and gun then Buddy for the win! If Luke commits to grit and grind then Bogi for the win! If Luke can’t decide, then hire Mark Jackson (or any other coach).
Mark Jackson?
That’s literally why I added “(and any other coach)” after the fact ð. I know MJ isn’t too hot of a name around here
https://uproxx.com/dimemag/mark-jackson-golden-state-warriors-festus-ezeli-team-feud/
Keep that piece of shit away from our franchise. Hiring MJ as coach TERMINATES my kings fandom.
Don’t you dare calling him MJ. JUST DON’T!
I thought you guys were good friends?
Vivek: “Vlade, we beat the LeBron-led Lakers to end the season on a WINNING STREAK! NBA 3.1! Would you like another year tacked onto your extension?”
Vlade: “Only if I get to make all the draft picks without stupid Joe getting involved.”
Vivek: “Done!”
Vlade: “Get rid of Ken, too. He just does number stuff all day. No good basketball.”
Vivek: “He’s fired immediately!”
Vlade: “Matina can stay. I just want a door installed between our offices.”
Vivek: “Emailing the contractors now.”
Marvin: “I have amputated my own foot in a freak knife-juggling accident.”
Vlade: “We will need press release. ‘Bagley injured; will re-evaluate in 4-6 weeks.’ That will work.”
Peaches (from home): “ALL INJURIES MATTER! EVERY ONE!!!!!!”
I thought Parker had a good restart. I’m not gonna extrapolate much from it, but it was a pleasant surprise. Based on the lineups he was used in, it seems like they feel he’s a small ball 5 at this point in his career. I don’t necessarily disagree. He didn’t seem overwhelmed on the defensive end on the floor from what I saw.
He could be a nice offensive spark off of the bench, but I still wouldn’t count on him to stop anyone. Who knows, he may go into the offseason and really get into shape, being a contract year and all. Kings may get a productive Parker who has value at the deadline.
I say all this because I fully expect him to opt in. If he doesn’t I feel it says more about what’s behind the curtain of the Kings than Parker himself.
Part of me wants Parker to out-perform Bagley next season since they’re basically the same person.
HELL YEAH!!!ð¤£ð¤£ð¤£ð¤£
Maybe between the two, we can get 50-60 healthy games combined. Go into next season with our backup PF position solidified for over half the season.
I suspect if we brought him back, he would continue to be Jabari Parker.
Yeah, you are probably right.
That dude might be the worst screen-slipper of any big I’ve watched in Kings history. But overall, agree that he played well.
Worse than Cauley Stein?
I saw him , 3 times, to move 4 feet to contest a layup when one of our guards was beaten. At best, I can see him having value on the second unit when the offense gets sluggish.
Obviously, he’s not the reincarnation of Manute Bol. I just think the Kings played winning basketball every time he was on the floor in the bubble. I’m not the type of person that just thinks “he will be bad because he has been bad”. I can at least consider the possibility that a 25 year old former #2 pick may still have some potential in a more refined role.
Sorry this just gets at one of my biggest pet peeves about team building. High end talent is absolutely essential to winning. I’m not discrediting that. But, one thing that fans almost always seem to overlook is that there are 240 total minutes played per game per team. In any given game there might be over a dozen different lineup iterations. The Kings played ~3500 minutes total this season. Their most used lineup was only on the court for 263 of those minutes.
The goal, when constructing a roster, is to have enough players with complimentary, or exceptional skills that there isn’t a big dropoff mixing and matching one lineup with another. If a guy has skills that aren’t typically associated with their position, or they are highly skilled at the skills associated with their position, then they are extra valuable. They compensate for the deficiencies of other players in the lineup.
You may be asking “what’s your point dude?”. And here’s my fucking point dude (big lebowski walter quote): a guy like Parker can conceivably play the 3, 4 or 5. He has a blue chip pedigree. He’s got some significant injury history. BUT, he’s still only 25 years old. Unfortunately, he has failed everywhere partially because he was unwilling to accept his role. He may also be incapable of fulfilling some roles. And…that’s the exact type of distressed asset I’d target if I was in charge of this dump. Unfortunately, Bradley Beal is not walking through that door folks!
Anyways, I look at all these good teams and they have a lot of young nobodies that became somebodies, or washed up somebodies that became something better.
The perfect local example of the latter is Ben Mclemore. He’s having his best season a year after his second stint in Sacramento. The difference is Houston understood how to maximize Ben’s contribution by assigning him a role within various lineups that could compensate for his deficiencies. His confidence grew once he realized he only needed to succeed within a specific role. The team succeeded because they didn’t ask him to do more than he was capable of.
tl;dr: One man’s trash is another man’s treasure and whatnot.
I think people like Parker are really hard for us as fans to read, because sooooooo much of his potential contribution has to do with his willingness to embrace his optimal roll. If he’s had a come-to-Basketba’al moment and he’s now willing to move the ball faster, shoot a bit less, and put in consistent effort on defense (he doesn’t have to be good, just try), then I think his player option could be really nice to have next year. But if he still plays like a ball-stopping, high usage, one-way player, then well…
I put Lavine in a similar boat. IF he’s willing to play off-ball more as a secondary initiator focusing more on cutting and running off-screens, move the ball quicker, and put in more defensive work, then he could be a great addition. IF he’s still going to be an ISO scorer that can’t defend at all, then …
The perfect outlier example may be Ben McLemore. And if we had a chance to bring Ben back, I’d probably just roll my eyes.
Maybe Jabari Parker is a clump of gold in the stool of this year’s Sacramento Kings. But to me, 80 minutes of NBA time is akin to you squinting at that gold from 100 yards away. Most likely, when you get up super close, it’s just corn, bro.
I wouldn’t consider Parker to be a “bad” player, but I don’t see any reason to believe he’s anything more now than what he’s ever been.
Perhaps he has more potential, but he’s also over 8,000 minutes into his NBA career, so I’d probably prioritize that in my decision making over 80 minutes of mostly garbage time in the bubble.
He only has two feet.
Play Parker with Bjelica in the 2nd unit. Opposing offenses will be so confused as they fight over which big they want target more, and get 24 second violations every time down the court.
Meanwhile, Mem won and Phx is going to win. So Por has to win to finish 8th, with Mem 9th. A loss by Por & they drop to 10, with Mem 8 & Phx 9. SA is done.
Lakers praying for a Portland loss.
Divac’s and Walton’s key cards better not work when they get back to Golden 1.
Vlade and Luke downvoted this.
I think the only part of this season I enjoyed was the 10-15 games before the shutdown when the Kings had a little momentum. Otherwise I think this is one of the least enjoyable seasons I’ve ever had as a Kings fan, which is saying something.
My favorite part of this season was going online when The Kings Herald launched. Was like a virtual house warming party.
There is,
A house,
In Sacramento.
It’s Calllllled the Kings Herald,
And it’s been,
The ruin,
Of many a poor fan.
Don’t
killserenade theheraldmessenger.The King’s Herald new tagline:
“Misery loves company.”
ð
Edit: Vlade stepping down helps but still feels like a bittersweet necessity. We’ll all have to hold each other tightly the next few years.
My favorite parts of the NBA season this year were:
Can we have some termination announcements in the next 7 days. I would love to wake up to a ESPN update: Vlade and Luke have been fired. Then, Maybe I can get excited about a pair of Top 5 picks in the 2021-22 drafts.
The mysterious Kings employee downvoter has returned!
It’s amazing how little I cared about the game today. I was so excited when it ended. Just a total waste of time.
If you see a really nice 1998 green Acura TL with “Fire Vlade” written on the back windshield in purple paint market it’s me
I’m so pissed my 2004 Acura TL is starting to fall apart. The A/C is now only working sporadically, and I had to call AAA the other day to bang on the starter to get it running. I was really hoping to get to 300k miles before getting a new one, but I think I’m gonna fall <20k short.
I’m impressed it lasted 100K miles. I’m kidding, Acura’s are okay. Better than buying a Ferrari.
This is the car I wish I could have bought:
https://insidemazda.mazdausa.com/the-mazda-way/technology/mazdas-skyactiv-x-breaks-cover/
I’m thinking about downgrading to a Ferrari
Might as well get a Jaguar since you’re into money pits.
I bought a Ferrari. Broke down to the tune of $10K in the first 30 minutes I owned it.
Still have it, BTW.
I hope you enjoy it.
Is it still in the garage with its own oil spot, cobwebs on the doors & you’ve taken up bike riding? You’d have to put a battery charger on, just to get the doors to unlock and the windows to roll down? That’s an old BMW.
It gets driven occasionally but yeah, mostly it sits on a battery tender and collects dust and cobwebs. But when it does leave the nest, it’s like a day at the circus. When it’s working, it’s a joyous machine. But she can be a cruel mistress.
Here’s how you can replace the starter.
lol it would cost me more to buy all the tools to actually pull this off!
(I’m not a very handy man)
Not really. Those socket sets are cheaper than you think. But if you won’t fix it, there’s no point in buying tools. LOL
Didn’t tune in to this one. The only thing that would give me a glimmer of hope or an ounce of excitement is if there was just an unconfirmed rumor that Vlade and Luke are getting fired.
Alright the bubble is over. Now I can look forward to another crappy regular season. Huzzah!
I see Luke is still coaching the Lakers into losses.
Only real accomplishment he had had as a head coach!
Is a Buddy/Levert trade possible? Who’s says no? (The Nets Ifeanyi, the Nets)
Probably depends a lot on their ability to re-sign Harris to a reasonable deal. Obviously putting an elite shooter between Irving and Durant would be ideal.
Those 2 being excellent playmakers helps alot.
Buddy’s deal might be the real prohibitive factor IMO.
If Levert is involved, their deals are only a few million apart. The Nets actually have lots of contracts that could facilitate that trade. The question is if they want Hield.
I’d guess because they will re-sign Harris, they value LeVert slightly over Hield because of the better playmaking ability and BBIQ.
I mean an Irving, Hield, Harris, Durant, Allen would be absolutely ridiculous offensively, but can Allen and Durant hold up to anchor the defense?
With Irving, Harris and Durant all being exceptionally efficient shooters, I’m guessing they’d rather have Levert’s better defense and versatility. And, of course, Levert shot 36% from 3 this year on 5 attempts. So if that’s real it isn’t like he’s a negative from range.
That said, if Harris walks, the equation changes quite a bit.
Doesn’t Levert’s value change with Durant and Irving though? Can only have so many guys that play with the ball. I think that might play into it.
13 Assists is pretty impressive by BJelly………..no-look pass, cross-court pass…
I am quite sure he got the best court vision in this roster…….and he should be handling the ball more….@maybe we just need to put BJelly as our PG@
Nice pass by BJelly, but just look at the smile from Walton….is he wondering “Is that my team? Why they played so good with nice passing?”
p.s. Hopefully J. Parker can bounce back, he move well without the ball, can push the ball
Ah, the postseason.
Despite the fact that they do not participate (or rather because of that fact), the part of the season I get the least frustrated with the Kings.
Oh man, PHX went 8-0 and just missed. That must have been a fun ride for their fans though.
Yeah, even their frustration (missing out despite going 8-0) is better than our (everything sucks).
Freaking Lillard.
The bubble went alot better for Suns fans than it did for Kings fans. Shocker of all shockers.
Bulls have fired coach Jim Boylen….
Will there be chance that we can make a trade with the Bulls ?
e.g. Hield + 2nd round pick for Markkanen/Lavine + Valentine ??
It’ll be interesting to see what direction the new FO decides to go in. Right now I think it’s really hard to guess. I mean, I personally would trade Lavine. But probably not for Hield. They need ballhandlers badly. Downgrading from Lavine to Hield in that aspect while taking on the older player on a bigger contract doesn’t seem like the way to go to me.
Maybe we can toss Walton into the deal.
There’s a decent chance a new coach will know how to use Markkanen correctly. They already drafted a defensive big to play next to him, so it shouldn’t be a big issue.
Yeah, Boylen is terrible. If healthy, a Carter/Gafford, Markkanen, Porter front court theoretically fits really well.
Of course, that IF is huge.
I’m looking at who’s on the roster for next year and trying to figure out who played at, above, or below their salary.
Harrison Barnes($22M) – Slightly overpaid but I like his salary structure. Tradeable, but keepable.
Corey Joseph- ($12M)- At value, but way overpaid for a team with a clear #1 PG. Tradeable
Marvin Bagley ($9M)- Way over paid. Always hurt and contribution is marginal. The pick is sunk cost at this point and I’d be open to either dumping him or praying that he can stay healthy and become a consistent contributor. That $9M is wasted right now though.
Nemanja ($7.1M)- Underpaid. Consistent contributor. Borderline starting level stretch 4.
Jabari Parker ($6.5M)- Underpaid. Definitely has a place in the league. Can fill the bucket as at least a backup 3/4.
Fox ($8M)- Underpaid. Duh. Starting level PG with upside. Untradable.
Buddy ($24M)- I was fine with his contract when he signed it, but his defense has disappeared completely. Not worth it.
Richaun Holmes ($5M)- A steal. Sold backup center at least.
Justin James ($1.5M)- Whatever.
IMO- Nemanja, Fox, and Barnes are the core with Holmes a throw in due to his favorable contract. If you can dump Hield resign BB but don’t keep both. Do everything the team can to get some defensive minded players around them. Preferably ones that can also rebound. Make a run at an original Kings pick in Whiteside and a Marcus Morris. Give up anyone who helps to that end.
Keep Parker as a backup. And build with a bunch of contributing FAs.
Depth chart:
PG- Fox, whoever
SG- BB or Heild and whoever we can fill the gaps with.
PF/SF- Morris, Barnes, Parker and whoever we can fill the gaps with
C- Whiteside, Holmes
I appreciate the thought that went into this even if I disagree with some of the assessments, but I look at that roster and I just don’t see how it’s any better than where we are today. I guess I would have to see what we got in exchange for Buddy/Bogi.
Well, if no one else is going to say it, F*** the Lakers.
Can we curse on the new site?
Badge Legend