The NBA has officially locked the date on the NBA Draft. There had been tentative dates floated around, but now the date is officially set for November 18th according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
ESPN Sources: NBA has locked in November 18th for the 2020 Draft. Date had been tentative.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 16, 2020
As we wrote a few weeks ago, the delay provides a benefit for the Sacramento Kings. As the team continues interviews for their new head of basketball operations, the additional months will allow the new regime time to finalize their draft board and free agent discussions.
Additional dates have yet to be determined, but will likely be determined in the days and weeks to come. Among these are the dates for free agency, and when the new season is expected to begin.
Part of the reason for these delays is to allow additional time for the league to determine what the new salary cap will look like. There’s speculation the cap could decrease due to lost revenues, or that the owners and players could agree to freeze the cap for a specified length of time. Free agency was originally expected to begin a few days after the draft, so we can likely assume free agency will begin sometime in late November.
Pleeeeease don’t crap the bed on this one Kong’s
We finalize our new decision maker later this week, and they have 2 months to get ready for the draft! Plenty of time.
OT: It pisses me off so bad they got rid of Malone. He’s a great coach, but an even better man. That’s such a cliche thing to say, but it’s just true.
Feel the same, Rordog. Was just watching his interview on ESPN, and just reiterated to me what a great coach we lost. I’m happy for him though!
Oh, what could’ve been….
All of this GM talk and I couldn’t remember who hired Malone. As I suspected it was Petrie. The interesting thing is that hiring Malone was the last transaction Petrie was responsible for. He tried to give us hope but Vivek killed it.
Vivek hired Malone, before he hired Pete as the GM.
Someone needs to correct Basketballreference.com
June 23, 2011: Selected Bismack Biyombo (1st round, 7th pick), Tyler Honeycutt (2nd round, 35th pick) and Isaiah Thomas (2nd round, 60th pick) in the 2011 NBA Draft.
June 23, 2011: As part of a 3-team trade, the Sacramento Kings traded Beno Udrih to the Milwaukee Bucks; the Sacramento Kings traded Bismack Biyombo to the Charlotte Bobcats; the Charlotte Bobcats traded Tobias Harris, Stephen Jackson and Shaun Livingston to the Milwaukee Bucks; the Milwaukee Bucks traded Corey Maggette to the Charlotte Bobcats; and the Milwaukee Bucks traded Jimmer Fredette and John Salmons to the Sacramento Kings.
June 30, 2011: Traded Omri Casspi and a 2017 2nd round draft pick (Jordan Bell was later selected) to the Cleveland Cavaliers for J.J. Hickson.
December 17, 2011: Signed Travis Outlaw as a free agent.
December 24, 2011: Signed Chuck Hayes as a free agent.
March 21, 2012: Signed Terrence Williams to a 10-day contract, then signed to a contract for the rest of the season.
June 28, 2012: Selected Thomas Robinson (1st round, 5th pick) and Orlando Johnson (2nd round, 36th pick) in the 2012 NBA Draft.
June 29, 2012: Traded Orlando Johnson to the Indiana Pacers for cash.
July 16, 2012: Traded a 2014 2nd round draft pick (DeAndre Daniels was later selected) to the Toronto Raptors for James Johnson.
July 16, 2012: Signed Aaron Brooks as a free agent.
September 24, 2012: Signed Hamady N’Diaye as a free agent.
February 20, 2013: Traded Francisco GarcÃa, Tyler Honeycutt and Thomas Robinson to the Houston Rockets for Cole Aldrich, Toney Douglas, Patrick Patterson and cash.
May 30, 2013: Hired Michael Malone as Head Coach
With all our could-have-beens, I find myself simply fantasizing about Malone constructing his team around Luka. I’m not sure time heals this one.
Though if it makes you feel any better, the equation where we did well enough to he happy extending Malone AND bad enough to be in position to draft Doncic probably doesn’t exist. Unless it’s a Spurs-“We-would-never-tank-how-dare-you-suggest-such-a-thing” situation.
Yeah, my fantasies are Malone w/IT, DMC & Rudy (though I’m not sure how good that team would’ve been due to DMC’s volatility) & Joerger w/Luka & Fox (I think that definitely would’ve been a great team).
But he couldn’t coach offense you see……..
Ha!
He’s a hell of a coach. Denver IMO isn’t even that talented and Jokic overrated. It’s his coaching
Hes the one that got away, not IMO Joerger who was fired for actual cause (unlike Malone)
Malone is doing a lot with a little, it’s truly amazing.
As for the title of the article, that sucks, was looking forward to it in October.
Denver is pretty talented. Jokic is arguably the best C in the West. Add great coaching to that and you’ve got a WCF/Finals appearance. You need both to reach that plateau.
Jokic is approaching top 5 NBA, IMO. I think it is entirely possible that within the next few years the top 3 NBA players are all going to be European in Giannis, Jokic, and Doncic.
Lies. Vlade said Bagley will still be the better player.
And they fired him because Demarcus got sick and we lost a ton of games. We still had a good start despite letting IT go for nothing. It was such a knee-jerk reaction firing.
All true, but at the time there were some serious issues with his coaching that people gloss over.
It took him quite some time to get to where he is now. And good talent makes coaching easier.
Having said that, and despite all that, firing him then for the reasons they did was stupid.
Agreed. Malone certainly had his ups and downs as a coach. The Mike Malone right now is waaaayyyyy more better than the Mike Malone 6 years ago. Even in Denver his first couple of seasons there were still some issues with his coaching and rotations but he has certainly improved over the course of time. A lot of us just probably wish our ownership and FO had more patience and we could have ended up with a really good young coach to grow together with our young squad.
I’m not sure it’s being glossed over. It was his first HC job, and I think most of us (at the time) saw a guy who at least had the ship pointed in the right direction. And having your first head coaching job while dealing with the constant DMC drama can’t be easy.
I saw him as a guy with the potential to get better over time. I think it’s proven out to be the case.
And good talent makes coaching easier, but I wouldn’t say this Nuggets team is more talented than the two teams they’ve taken down in the bubble so far.
Yet another reason I want Gupta. I read that just before league shut down in March, he was attending college games and scouting players. He could hit the ground running with plenty of time before the draft.
Eh, proof will be in the pudding.
Stop examining the pudding constantly!
This implies I can be bothered to care about the Kings at this point. I can’t be bothered. I have to….clip my toenails…..and grow a chia pet….and other stuff. I’m very busy you see. I can’t be bothered to think about the Sacramento Kings at all.
And yet, here you are. (sorry couldn’t resist) 🙂
my vote goes for Lamine Diane at 12. Playmaking? Check. Defense? Check. Plays 3/4? Check. High IQ? Check. Gamer? Check. Nba athleticism? Check. Upside? Check. Other guys I rank higher than the pundits rank: Malachi Flynn and Xavier Tillman.
I said a lot more in the Podcast thread, but the short story is Diane is very interesting for a lot of reasons, but he isn’t a high floor guys like Flynn and Tillman. His physical traits, generally high motor, broad base of raw skills, and production are definitely enticing. But on the other side of the coin he often plays out of control, is really undisciplined, his decision-making borders on terrifying, and his basketball specific skills (handle, shooting mechanics, defensive technique, etc) are really raw. He really dominates every possession at both ends for Northridge. For better or worse. He scores a ton. But does it inefficiently with some pretty cringe-worthy shot selection at times. He gets a ton of steals and blocks, but also gives up a lot of easy buckets and fouls unnecessarily a lot. He gets a good number of assists, but puts up even more turnovers.
Ultimately, if a team can refine his skills and get him to play more within himself, then he could absolutely be the type of second round sleeper that can make all the difference in a team’s outlook and development. But he’s not a guy, IMO, that you want to draft in a position where you’re going to depend on him turning out. Personally, based on the Kings current picks, I’d happily take him at 52. I’d be okay with him at 43. There’s a decent chance they could even pick him up as an UDFA.
You know what’s interesting? I thought you were talking about Marvin Bagley for a while until I reread it and realized you said he dominates every possession on defense. True he needs some refinement, but I’m happy you see his upside and the high floors of Flynn and Tillman.
I just thought of another comp for Diane. His midrange game reminds me of Kevin Martin, who was not a 3-point shooter coming out of college either. I like how he can operate as a scorer from the high post. Defense and rebounding obviously way better than Martin. I think he can do more facilitating if asked to. Sometimes takes questionable shots but apart from that I do think he is a high IQ player who can be trusted with the ball in his hands.
I found your comment on the other thread and responded. Start thinking Kevin Martin but longer, better D, better rebounder, better passer. Compare sophomore year stats, KMart at Western Carolina vs. Diane at Cal State Northridge. Compare their midrange games. I don’t know if you recall KMart being drafted but the midrange was his bread and butter in college. Compare how they run the fast break. Factor in that Diane moved from Dakar, Senegal about 5 years ago and had to pass classes while learning English.
Yeah, I don’t see the Martin comp. Really, in any way. The college versions were entirely different players. Their greatest similarity is their ability to get to the line. Martin absolutely made his living in the mid-range. Diane doesn’t score well in the mid-range. He scores efficiently in the paint and that’s it. I mean, Martins least efficient season he had a TS% above 58 (Surrounded by seasons of 63% and 60%), whereas Diane put up TS%s of 50 as a freshman and 54 as a sophomore. Add in the fact that Diane is a poor FT shooter, and I just don’t see how scoring/shoot is similar between the two at any level.
The trend is up. Diane is improving. Remove about two questionable shots per game and we’re almost there. I also mentioned the stat comparisons because I feel the concerns of turnovers, decision-making and rawness were over exaggerated. The midrange similarities is in how they elevate on jumpers, adjust in mid-air, shoot on the move, and make nba-level shots. Their confidence and scoring mentality is similar also. I think his floor is higher than most think. He knows how to play basketball. Anyway, just trying to be persuasive and call attention to a player who I feel is underrated.
Since you think Diane is so inefficient, how do you compare his college stats to Kawhi Leonard? What is so scary about a highly productive player who flat out balls?
OT: Congrats to the Nuggets. Not sure they will have enough to take down the Lakers, but we will see. It should be a fun series. Someone on Denver will have to step up in a big way. Maybe Millsap or MPJ?
I’m not a huge fan of troll jobs on twitter right after teams lose, but I had to laugh at “Wayoff P”. Just cracks me up.
Regarding the performance from MPJ, would he ranks one of the best rookies in 2018 ?
(I mean excluding Doncic, where would he ranks ? behind Ayton ?)
So, Divac is probably not totally wrong, as he ranks MPJ behinds Ayton, Doncic and Bagley.
MPJ was a serious top candidate for the #1 pick back in 2018 before he got injured in college. There were even rumblings that the F.O was considering MPJ at the #2 pick even with his injury history. So I am not surprised if he’s already showing his potential with the Nuggets during these playoffs. Heck I even ranked him #2 on my board back in 2018 before the 2017-2018 even began. (This was the season were teams were pro-actively tanking).
Yeap. That was such a great low risk, high reward draft for the Nuggets. Fuck the Lakers. Go Nuggets! (And Miami)
That Heat Celtics series is going to be ridiculous to watch. Game 1 was very entertaining all the way through.
Lol yea. Told my wife to record the game for me since I get home at 6pm she did and she was so excited after the game that she told me the score. ð¤¦ð»ï¸ð¤·ð»ï¸
I don’t want to see another Lakers-Celtics Finals. Shit gets old after a while. I’m rooting for the Nuggets-Heat.
absolutely. They match up so well. I feel like the entire eastern playoffs was just waiting for these two to meet.
Yeah and I was pissed the Kings didn’t try and make a move on MPJ. If I remember correctly Denver was shopping their 14th pick to take on Faried’s contract. Not sure if the report was accurate but if it was, that was certainly a miss for Divac and the Kings. They could have easily had Doncic and MPJ! Once again as a Kings fan, all we can do and think about are the “What Ifs”.
This was the exact reason why so many Kings fans (despite loving Vlade) was so furious about hiring Vlade as head of basketball ops. If we had a savvy GM, we’d probably be in the semis by now. And if the reports were correct, we’d have Fox/Luka/Bogi/Buddy/Giles/MPJ and Malone. Life of a Kings fan.
Agreed but I am not sure if we would have the chance of drafting Fox and Luka if Malone was still the head coach. I truly believed if he wasn’t prematurely fired we could have sniff the playoffs or at the very least fight for the 8th seed in his supposed 4- year contract with the Kings which would cancel out the chance at a top 5 pick in 2017 and top 2 pick in 2018.
But we don’t have to go that far with Malone, heck if Vlade just did the right choice in selecting Luka with the 2nd pick, and had the savviness to get the 14th pick from Denver which would have netted him MPJ (again they were high on MPJ so it could have been a no brainer for them to take on Faried’s contract for a possible chance at landing MPJ), and not firing Joerger, he could have easily re-constructed the iconic Kings team in the early 2000’s with their signature passing and ball movement.
Fox, Bogi, Luka, Bjelly and Giles? Man imagine the ball movement and BBIQ with those 5 on the floor together with Joerger at the helm.
Don’t forget Mitchell. I’m pretty sure 99% of all knowledgeable basketball people would not consider having two playmakers on the court a bad thing.
But nope, not Vlade. We trade down and draft Justin freaking Jackson.
I didn’t have a problem with Vlade being President of BBall Ops. My issue came when he appointed himself GM.
Since President of BB Ops is generally a higher position than GM, there’s no way I would’ve been fine w/him as President of BB Ops. He might’ve been fine as the GM if there was someone else as President of BB Ops, but I doubt it.
I don’t think it would’ve been possible to have Malone & Luka. Malone would’ve made the Kings too good to get Luka or he would’ve been fired.
I’d imagine they stopped shopping that pick once MPJ fell to them. It was just too easy of a pick at that point.
I’d say he’s top 10 for sure, and you might talk me into top 5. Really hard to say since he’s been put in a great no rush situation in Denver. His weaknesses are really being hidden on a good defensive team, and even then it almost cost Denver the series against Utah. He was virtually unplayable at points in that series. I’ve got the list like this, putting MPJ in a best case ranking from what he’s done so far.
Doncic (duh!)
Trae
Ayton
SGA
JJJ
MPJ
Devonte Graham
Bagley
Mitchell Robinson
Really didn’t answer your question. I’d say Vlade wasn’t totally wrong evaluating his talent, but the back issues along with his skinny frame is a huge risk to take at 2, especially what’s looking to be a pretty talented draft class.
I don’t think Bagley’s nearly as good as Robinson.
And take another one off the list…
Adding…
I’m gonna be so let down if we end up with Wilcox.
There’s hope!
This is going to be excruciating!
Badge Legend