Welcome back to the mailbag!
Before diving into the specifics of the mailbag and questions, I want to take a quick moment and address the hundreds, if not thousands, of messages I’ve received inquiring as to what will happen to the beloved mailbag story series, featuring Greg, now that he’s mostly departed in his official capacity. Rest assured, everyone, he will continue to be the muse in every edition of the mailbag as long as I’m around. With that critical piece of news out of the way, let’s talk Kings basketball!
This is our first post-season (not postseason, as the King shy away from that sort of nonsense) session together, and there have been lots of things happening within and outside of Sacramento.
- Monte McNair and Wes Wilcox both departed the organization
- Scott Perry was hired as the General Manager within (approximately) 90 nanoseconds of the McNair announcement
- Perry held a press conference in which he said all of the right things, including highlighting a need for a true point guard and length
- Doug Christie was also discussed, with Perry hoping to name a permanent head coach in the coming days
Outside of the Kings, the NBA playoffs are continuing to roll, with the Grizzlies, Heat, Magic, and Bucks in trouble, and the Cavaliers, Celtics, Pacers, and Thunder looking dominant.
Now, get to asking about any of the things above, or the draft, or the offseason, or potential trades, or whatever else comes to mind!
What’s the path forward? Retool around the keepers (Murray, Ellis, whoever you think is a keeper) and try to move any/everybody else? Trade everybody and start over?
We’re not bereft of talent, but I don’t know what to do with what we’ve got moving forward.
IMO keep Murray, Ellis and hopefully La Ravia. Probably have to keep LaVine because of his contract. IMO not really a bad thing. Trade Sabonis, Monk and DDR. JV still a good backup center. I probably trade Carter. IMO Fultz can do backup point guard. I still believe he has potential but you need to play him more over the summer and pregames. I think Trey is gone. LaRavia can easily take his spot. Get back 8 mil. Keep Issac Jones. There are a couple G league players I would really look at this summer.
My biggest fear is that they will trade Murray & Ellis to ‘upgrade’ the roster around Sabonis, Lavine and DeRozan, as they are the only real assets at the moment.
IMO with those three assets the Kings through trades can improve their team with younger promising players and still be competitive. Probably can’t trade LaVine but once Monk and DDR are gone LaVine will do much better on offense. He still is one of the leagues better offensive players and still can shoot the 3 at a high percentage and when he gets hot he can change the dynamics of the game. I would include Monk with Sabonis and DDR as my top three to trade.
Will Domas request a trade this offseason? Should he?
Knowing a complete blow-up is likely a non-starter, if Domas does ask to be traded, what are some example moves you’d propose to retool for next season?
What move/moves(head coach and/or player moves) do you think could placate Domas and keep him in the fold?
IMO I would trade Sabonis and Carter to the Nets for Claxton, Johnson and Wilson. Claxton is not a Sabonis but plays good defense even extend defense. Can rebound and is a rim runner. With LaVine Johnson and Murray you don’t need a great scorer at center but a good defensive one. Only 25 with a high motor. With some of my other ideas we would have some players that playing along side him would solidify that center area. Johnson is a scorer but also plays decent defense. If you want offense you have it with Johnson, Murray and Lavine. Wilson is an up and coming player that would help the Kings with both offense and defense.
If Domas asks out, something like this works for me, but I don’t think the Nets want a player of Domas’ age at this point in their rebuild.
He isn’t that old and IMO they want him.
Domas’s contract won’t be easy to trade unless we are taking back equally bloated contracts and/or sending pics. Not sure on his value based on the ball dominant way be needs to play to be productive and the “empty calories” critiques along with his big game performances. Players more easily moved are DD, Monk and KM. Attach a pick to one or more of them and may get a nicer return.
Domas, DDR, a couple of 1sts for Giannis.
You’ll take DDR and some 1sts for Kuzma and Domas and some more 1sts for Trae Young and like it!
Greg is gone and the TKH have yet to hear from Aykis, who is doing his best Vivek impressionation. What about some accountability?
How will the staff fill Greg’s void, what is the direction of the website?
Is it true that Aykis constantly rewrote Greg’s articles?
And what about the rumors that Ziller returned as an external advisor?
Will there be a day where I’ll only have to log in once?
And what about the Monarchs of the TKH website, the Z button? Forever lost, or will it some day return?
Rik asking the real questions right here. The people demand answers!
The Z button!
It’s honestly the one feature I miss
Same.
Greg got fired, didn’t he?
Greg passed on Amick to draft Tim, and the site has never recovered.
Oh, come on. Amick would’ve taken the pen out of Blake’s hand and you know it! And you can’t deny Tim’s 2nd paragraph ability!
Is anyone on staff watching the A’s? The walkoff RBI last night was great fun.
Good article in the Ringer the other day about the A’s:
The Faustian Bargain of the “Sacramento” Athletics
Thanks that is a great article. Even has a Mirann quote!
I second that Kfan. Thanks for that referral to the TKH community. Dan Moore Is great. This article was a sequel to one about being an Oakland A’s fan in light of Fisher destroying them and then moving them. Check him out at dmowriter.com. He has really nailed the ethos of both Oakland and Sacramento. And whatever the differences between the two, (I’m East Bay raised, Davis resident since ‘08) both can say: unaccountable team owners suck!
Do the Kings draft for need or the best available player?
Draft?
I don’t have the heart to tell them.
Both! Because they are going to get the 1st pick and take Cooper Flagg!
I feat the only things saving this team for next season are the lottery gods, and there is the slimmest chance of that happening. I’ll still tune in for the lottery, but am not getting my hopes up.
If they get the first pick they’ll pass on Flagg because theyvek are smarter than the rest of the world and know who the real best player in the draft is.
Mark Sears.
The real reason why the Kings didn’t need a pick this year. They knew he would be coming back to Alabama, and could get him in 2026.
Chess move.
This must be in reference to the Spurs. The Spurs pick that should have come to Sacramento in the Fox trade will inevitably net them Flagg and another Dynasty to come.
For need.
1) Assuming there’s no full re-build happening and its more of a “re-load”, what is priority #1, #2, #3 this offseason?
2) Who are your preferences for coaching and why?
What is your prediction for a realistic roster for the Kings next season?
My hopeful prediction is:
PG: Ellis, Shroder (UFA 2 yr, $25M)
SG: Lavine, Monk
SF: Murray, Laravia
PF: Ben Simmons (UFA 1 yr, $4M), Bol Bol (UFA 2 yr, $6M)
C: Sabonis, Valanciunas
(DDR traded for picks & filler)…
But I’m curious what yall’s idea of a REALISTIC roster would look like next year… I have a feeling it will be mostly the same except for a Sabonis trade (as our other “assets” do not have much value).
So you’d want to use the entire MLE to sign Dennis Schroder to be Keon’s backup?
I wonder what it would take to get Nikola Topic from OKC. He might be the type of PG to come in and help out, assuming he is healed from the ACL injury.
6’6, 210lb PG. Maybe they would be interested in Monk?
See above. Perry wants defense.
I’m not sure Topic is worth that. He’s a totally unproven rookie from a very weak draft. OKC can afford to just sit and wait on him…and just about everyone else. Their entire rotation 1-10 is under contract for next season.
If they win it all, which would be my bet right now, they are just gonna roll everyone back next season…and I mean everyone.
Sam Presti:
I would rather use the MLE and get Ty Jerome. Still yet I’ll take Monk and a first for Herb Jones and Jose Alvarado. 2 in 1.
Yes. Yes I would. Might be a starter, who knows. But he’ll get minutes and not sure what other PG’s we can get that could possibly help this team.
Good thought with following exceptions
at the trade deadline, if the team is not playoff competitive, you start cleaning house moving Monk, DDR, Val, maybe even Sabonis for a bunch of draft,picks. At this point you build through the draft like they should have 3 years ago.
Assuming an Assistant GM is next on the docket for Perry, the head coach search will likely follow before hopefully major roster changes are made this summer. Should the Kings remove the interim from in front of Coach Christie, does that give you cause for more concern to continued Vivek tomfoolery, or would you accept it as Perry’s decision?
Also, would you rather prefer to postpone the head coaching search until after Perry’s has a chance to restructure the team, then find the guy how can coach them?
I’d like to wait until the playoffs are over and see if there’s a top assistant somewhere worth hiring. Budenholzer ain’t doing it for me, Malone wouldn’t come to Sacramento on a bet, and no one else has really jumped out at me.
[Full disclosure: I haven’t bothered to look at who else might be available. I’m basketball-ambivalent for now.]
Some might say, “aren’t you describing Doug Christie?” and I would reply, “no, I’m thinking about a coach with hair and a lot more experience.”
If any actual people have questions, I would be honored to take them.
Good point. There could be some better options after the Finals. Perry is supposed to have some connections so I’m guessing he has a few in mind that he’d at least like to talk to.
That being said, if Christie is announced in the coming weeks, I might just wash my hands of next season because it just reaffirms who is calling the shots.
Coach first then both Perry and new coach to set the restructure of the team. Coach has to by in on the team.
I’d give a proven coach (Coach Bud, Jenkins etc.) some weight on roster decisions, but I wouldn’t afford that power to someone unproven like Christie or a first time head coach.
If Perry is calling the shots he cleans house and gets his own assistant GM and coach selected in that order. He needs his team in place and particularly not a coach with back channels and loyalty to Vivek, Vlade, and other pals in the front office. If anything other than that happens we know it is the same old, same old. Perry knows this too.
How is the lottery order decided these days? Do they still pipe the balls down the ping pong chute or is the official method now classified Top Secret? When will we know the results?
Lottery is May 12th. I think it’s still the same, ping pong balls before the show in a secret room and the cards revealed on the show.
I do wonder how they will handle the representative for our pick. Will there be a rep for Atl and for Us there? Just us? Just Atl?
Roy-Al will be there
That would be incredible. They need to bring him back next year. Break the damn curse.
Slamson vs. Roy Al. Good vs. Evil. It was be such a cool thing amongst Kings fans to have a story off the court to distract us from the product on the court.
If Vlade is there, I’ll just become a Spurs fan. He’s a human millstone.
He’d somehow tip the pick to LAL.
Stop calling, we have a winner.
Do you think Kayte knows how terrible she is?
What Kayte doesn’t understand is how terrible she is.
ame to you as to Marty.
PS She know more basketball than the 2 of you together.
Do you think you know how bias you are. I personally like Katye.
Questions:
You encapsulate him?
The only way I think it’s truly possible to build around him is you have to do the same thing we’ve needed to do for a few years now, add some damn length, 3&D players and finally for Pete’s sake, a damn stretch 4 who can block some shots who will clean up the drives Lavine gives up to the rim.
It really isn’t rocket surgery, just find players who compliment your stars. We have the offense, let’s get the defense and length who can impact the game in other ways.
I’m with you on that.
If LaVine is still here, which IMO he still will be, you don’t build around him. You integrate him in with the rest of the team. Perry wants teamwork and listening to Zach he is fine with that. Sabonis will be traded along with Monk, DDR and probably Carter. If you want something you have to give up something.
Let’s say you’re the new GM of the Kings.
If you had to make one unexpected, unorthodox move (roster, coaching, front office), the kind of thing you don’t think anyone on this site or around the league would think you’d try, what out of the box move are you making?
Something unexpected huh? How about a entirely competent move…it’d be like seeing Beno Udrih!
Why?
I’m going to say the same thing all summer until it happens. Trade Monk, DDR, Lyles, or give that 1st round pick back to the ATL for Trae Young, Okongwu, or Gueye. May have to send Carter or Fultz out as well, but this is all hypothetical.
Young
Lavine
Murray
Okongwu/Gueye
Sabonis
Fill in the rest of the roster. Honestly, if we can retain Laravia, the roster is already semi-filled. Laravia, Ellis, I. Jones, JV, McBuckets, and whichever we can retain between Carter of Fultz. That’s a solid start. The West will continue to be rough and we need a tough team. Maybe one more free agent pick up to add more balance to the roster.
Why should I stay a Kings fan at this point? Been a fan since ‘95 but feel hopeless with Vivek at helm.
Which teams, if any would you NOT swap Roster & Draft Capitol with? And why?
What is Scott Perry’s history / preference for 2nd round draft picks? One major area of frustration for me with Monte McNair (and to some extent, his predecessors) was burning 2nd round picks in throw-away trades and just not seeming to value them at all… but they can be a key to building a roster while remaining financially sound! Hitting on 2nds is sort of a franchise-building cheat code.
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