Vlade Divac and the Sacramento Kings have mutually agreed to part ways after 5 years under his leadership, according to The Athletic’s Sam Amick .
Kings GM Vlade Divac is stepping down, source tells @TheAthleticNBA. Joe Dumars (advisor previously) will be interim executive VP of basketball ops and immediately assumes GM duties. Dumars will be involved in the search for a new GM.
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) August 14, 2020
Amick reports the Joe Dumars will take over GM duties for the team, and a full search will be conducted for a permanent replacement.
While Divac was originally a celebrated hire after Pete D’Alessandro’s disastrous time in Sacramento, and signed a lucrative 4-year extension this past summer, his lack of experience at the position and questionable decision-making saw the Kings fail to make significant progress in the half-decade of his reign, compiling a record of just 162-238. Although Divac’s entire tenure was replete with regrettable outcomes, his most recent choice to replace Dave Joerger, the franchise’s most successful coach in more than a decade, with the unproven Luke Walton, while also not conducting a single interview, turned even the most his most faithful fans against him, as the team severely regressed under Walton’s leadership. Vlade Divac will always hold a legendary place within the franchise as a key player and international ambassador of basketball, but it was past time for Vivek Ranadive to move on from his services, despite the enormous financial cost.
This is a developing story, and we’ll update the site as additional news is made available.
Update: The Kings have confirmed the news via press release:
This was a difficult decision, but we believe it is the best path ahead as we work to build a winning team that our loyal fans deserve, said Kings Owner and Chairman Vivek Ranadive. We are thankful for Vlade’s leadership, commitment and hard work both on and off the court. He will always be a part of our Kings family.
It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as the General Manager for the Kings, said Vlade Divac. I want to thank Vivek for the opportunity and recognize all of the incredible colleagues who I had the great pleasure of working with during my tenure. Sacramento and the Kings will always hold a special place in my heart and I wish them all the best moving forward.
Update: Marc Spears of ESPN has reported that Joe Dumars will be considered for the permanent GM position, and that the team may not have a management team established before the NBA draft in October, while James Ham of NBCS has reported that the new General Manager will ultimately decide the fate of the rest of Sacramento’s front office, although Luke Walton will remain as the team’s head coach through next season.
It is possible Dumars could be considered for the Kings GM job if he is interested, a source said.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) August 14, 2020
It’s very possible the Kings GM gig job won’t be filled until after the 2020 NBA Draft, a source said.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) August 14, 2020
I have now confirmed through a league source that Luke Walton will coach the Sacramento Kings next season. He is safe for now.
— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) August 14, 2020
Keep those heads rolling!
If Divac is gone, Walton must be getting fed into a baler even as I type this.
If they replace Vlade without replacing Luke, that might actually be the last straw for me.
But I’m sure that Lose Walton would really like to be hired as GM of the Kings.
He and Dumars aren’t close personal friends, are they? We’re probably safe, only a Laker-at-heart would have hired Walton in the first place, and if there’s one thing Joe Dumars is not, it’s a Los Angeles Laker.
I bet it will be a year before Walton is gone. That way the next GM will have cover for a year, and the owners won’t have to pay two coaches.
We’ll spend the year treating luke like a piñata, the new GM will throw his hands up and say I need to evaluate the team. At the beginning of 21/22 we’ll have a new coach.
Regardless, it’s time to sell everything. No time to evaluate cause Luke is our coach. even if we had LEbron we’d miss the playoffs next year. By 21/22 the core guys of this team will be around 30. No coach worth his salt will want to walk into that situation.
If the next GM likes Fox go ahead and try and build around him with young guys. But there is no reason anyone outside of Fox and Bagley (just cause he has no trade value) isn’t moved for assets. And if you can get something of value for Bagley hallelujah. I just don’t see that happening. Better to hope he can get healthy/better
If only…
I also don’t like suggesting that Walton was unproven when he was hired. He was unequivocally proven to be a loser and franchise-killer.
Man, I have a lot to say.
Maybe you just have to “Stick around and be patient”, as Luke says.
(where’s the sarcasm button here?)
Get used to it, we have another year of it at minimum.
Get it out my man.
Who should be next on the chopping block?
Since Luke’s apparently safe for at least 1 more season, I’d say Matina. I hope that both of them are gone ASAP.
With Vlade gone, I wonder how long Peja stays. Can anyone tell me exactly what he does?
Good riddance he now has given me the 2 most painful memories as a king passing on Luka what should have been a slam dunk of a pick after the lottery gods gifted us the 2 spot, and passing to a wide open Robert Horry. I understand not making a call on Luke until a hire has been made and really hope he is next.
Should Breaking News get the special color of attention? Flashing red with a klaxon?
I can finally have my memories of Vlade the player without the GM Vlade peepee stink on them.
Needed to happen way sooner, but still makes me a bit sad. I wish him the best.
Luke next, please.
Yeah, vlade’s time as a gm tainted his time as a player for me. Now, I don’t quite feel as bad. Still need more changes to come for me to feel better about the state of the organization.
i think if the luka thing had just not happened, i’d be fine
Or traded down, got bagley and porter jr.
If the stink isn’t coming off of Isiah Thomas, it sure as hell isn’t coming off of Divac.
Which legacy will you have in your gauzy memories? The time his team choked in the biggest game in franchise history, or the time he passed up on a consensus likely All-NBA-caliber player in Luka?
At least Thomas got rings.
I gotta say, I wish I could celebrate the man as a player.
But some of his actions on the management side tarnish that – and not necessarily the Doncic miss, but his support of all types of bad behavior, whether that was DMC’s ongoing personality issues, Rondo’s gay bashing, or helping Walton bury his sexual assault complaint. It wasn’t just the poor drafting and roster management.
Absolutely. His moral fiber showed, and not in a good way.
And still people are sucking his shoelaces and telling what a wonderful human being he is.
I have to give Vivek credit, he picked the right guy for living on fan goodwill credit. Amazing how long and how far people fell for it.
People keep saying this?
how can you see Luka tear up the league without cursing Vlade for the next decade or so?
His legacy is tainted for good.
I’ll just selectively forget that like I selectively forget the Horry tip.
“Man, that Kangz GM really bonerfingered that 2018 draft. That guy, you know, what’s his name.”
I have a hard time remembering any of Vlade’s plays other than the Horry tip.
You just have to watch the tape.
(VHS tape from the late 90’s early 00’s, that is!)
You know it
Dang! I never thought this would happen. Sweet, but fleeting, relief
I wish it happened before the 2018 draft.
Er, actually I wish it happened before he was hired!
Too little, two drafts too late. Next on the agenda, a new GM that is told that he/she can’t fire Luke Walton.
Caboclo’d – we are two years away from being two years away. I will double down that no one on the current roster is on the Kings next playoff roster.
Here’s hoping that the new GM is given full autonomy and permission to blow this thing up.
Bye, Vlade.
Seven wasted years now, Vivek. Nice arena, though.
Honestly and with no malice, I would love to see a response from the down voters on this one. Trying to figure out what I mis-stated here.
I downvoted it because I sensed you were wearing pants when you typed it.
Me, too.
I don’t care about getting downvotes, but it would be nice to know the reasoning.
(I gave you a green thumb, by the way. Not a red one!)
Tell you how I look at this, and YMMV here – I consider them someone simply saying “I disagree with your opinion”. At first, I looked at them like they were flags, since that was the only option other than a Rec at…wait, what’s the name of that place?
Yeah, that’s fair. I guess they don’t owe anyone an explanation for why they disagree.
I certainly am guilty of green-thumbing a lot of comments without any explanation! 🙂
I get that. The downvotes don’t bother me – I’d just like to see the alternate take.
Absolutely. Not like you need to worry about your NetRating. ð
You have to look at it like rushing yards … you’re a net 33 yards at the moment.
Wow.
It’s the way it should be and yet I derive no joy from the news.
Still one of my favorite Kings players of all time!
Yeah, I would guess that anyone that has been calling for Vlade’s removal is taking little satisfaction in being right. I would have much preferred that Vlade proved me wrong for doubting him all these years.
I’ve been calling for it since he was hired. There was no way that this wasn’t going to end badly.
It’s a skilled position. That doesn’t mean a former player can’t do it (obviously, many have and done it well). It’s just that there was nothing in his background that indicated he was qualified to do much more than brand ambassador work.
Yeah, if you want to see Vlade as a GM, at least have him play assistant under an experienced mentor for a couple seasons.
Agree whole-heartedly. “Learn while you earn” may work as an apprentice , but it’s not a good choice (…cough, Vivek, cough…) for a GM position.
If he picked Luca we’d be in the playoffs and this town would be on fire. He’d be a hero.
but no. He messed up what I might argue was one of the most obvious picks to ever be resented considering the city, the team history, the GM and his international ties, the owner and his international ties, the Fan buzz, the desire to make it to the playoffs soon, the fact that bogi, one of Lucas Mentors was already here (was primed as Vlade and Peja part 2!) with Giles as Webber and fox as a way faster Bibby) AND… the fact that he was by far the most talented player on the board,
Amazing what one move can do for you. I mean, we might be in the playoffs, and giving him kudos for Fox, Doncic and maybe signing Holmes and Bjelica at bargain rates. The misses wouldn’t be as big of a deal.
Makes me think about Zach Lowe’s podcast focused on the Suns the other day. That franchise made 100 dumbshit moves, and even very recently. But they had Booker, and did a few other things right. His guest noted that the Suns just had a bunch of bites at the apple, and drafting Ayton and Bridges and dealing for Saric has corrected a lot of those bad moves.
Yeah, a series of good moves in relative proximity can make up for a lot of mistakes.
Damn, so true. We gotta let it go though, it’s been over.
It’s mixed feelings.
it is relief that a necessary thing happened and sadness that it was necesary.
It is a tiny sense of pride since the #HereWeBillboard may have been one of the drops that caused the bucket to overflow. But also apprehension on the question if they’ll bring in the right people this time.
It is frustration that it is too late and Luka is forever lost to us. It is hope because that bitch springs eternal and keeps sucking me back in every time I am almost out.
Luka lost forever? You just know whoever is GM here when Doncic is thirty-five and coming off of his fourth knee-replacement surgery is going to offer him a max contract.
But he would still out-perform Bagley (assuming he is still in NBA)
No mixed feelings here. Divac set this franchise back a decade. He was atrocious and should have been fired awhile back. He let his ego fuck things up.
Unfortunately, it will likely take Vivek leaving to change the course of this franchise but if they hire a non-Dumars GM maybe ???
And how many fucking times is Vivek not going to allow a GM to pick his coach?
Agreed, this is regrettable but inevitable.
Yeah. (sigh)
I don’t like to see people lose their jobs, and Vlade still has a special place in my heart as a player.
And also there’s no joy in seeing the direction of the Kings are going still. Joe Dumars isn’t going to be saving this franchise.
Vivek still has a lot of learning to do. If he will only let himself learn.
He only lost his job, he’s still being paid for another three years.
Tis the Kings way…
Vlade’s tenure as GM has been so terrible that I derive some joy from this. However, my suspicion that Vivek &/or Matina has actually made many, most or all of the basketball decisions during his tenure prevents me from feeling completely joyful about this.
Yeah, for me Vlade’s departure is more relief than joy.
The joy will come when we have an ownership that knows how to run a competitive basketball franchise.
Soooo happy to see him step down. This team needs a real GM.
Thanks for trying, Vlade. You did some damage, but still got love for you.
Haha, Divac “stepped down” in the same way that Benito Mussolini did.
Loved the player. Hated the GM.
YESSS!!!
Highlight of 2020
Luke next!
Would love that, but my guess is that Walton is around for at least another year.
If the new GM goes full Hinkie (or IS full Hinkie), he will spend the next couple of years deconstructing the roster. If that happens, there is no reason to fire Walton and hire another coach to lose games.
If the new GM thinks that there is a talent base to build off of, Walton will get at least one year to produce results.
Unlike Divac, I don’t think that Walton has any intentions of “stepping down,” and I don’t think the Kings will fire him. But we can dream.
Wanna bet the new GM is Joe Dumars?
You thinking he Dick Cheneys this thing?
I searched high and low and just can’t seem to find a viable candidate for the job, but you know, I did win a championship in Detroit and I do have some free time on my hands…
You know Sims, that’s exactly how Vlade got his job.
Also, how dare you bring Dick Cheney up at a time like this? I had almost gotten him out of my collective conscious…..
Please no…….oh God please no…..
I think if he wants to do it, it’s probably his. Or Peja. Yeah, it’s definitely going to be Peja.
That would be the Kangz way wouldn’t it.
Wouldn’t you want to hire someone who is rising in the coaching ranks, that hasn’t gotten his or her shot yet? If we’re doing a full rebuild, lets get someone who doesn’t think they already know everything.
That being said, Mark Fucking Jackson.
Eh, the coach for the next couple of years is going to be Eddie Jordan’d. He’s going to be the coach before THE coach.
I’ll pack Walton’s bags, but I don’t see the organization paying for two head coaches when the team is so obviously lottery material next season.
Everyone knows that when you kill the father, you have to kill the son, or he’ll take his revenge one day.
Jesus, if Walton is going to be a lame duck for the next 1-3 years, how will the team look when he’s not trying?
I don’t think a team could lose all eighty-two games in a season, but if it happens, Lose Walton will oversee it.
Which would translate into better lottery odds.
This is going to be a bad team regardless. The organization is going to look at that and ask why pay for two coaches?
I’m wondering why having one of the assistants step up in the interim is not an option. I’d rather have Roy Rana getting a shot and developing players over Bill Walton’s kid yammering about watching tape.
Sure, most fans would. But Walton / no Walton is not going to make a difference at the gate or in the standings, so what’s the point? That is going to be the way that the organization looks at it.
No way Cool-Bland Luke lasts more than a year.
It’s unlikely that Luke will last more than 1 more season, but it might happen if the Kings tank.
Mark Jackson would be sweet
No.. NOOOOOOO…dammit…NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
…somewhere else.
If we tank for a draft pick, Walton is the perfect coach for 1 more year
You know Walton could still fuck it up, though. We’ll win just enough games to get the #14 pick.
Kings need to start losing and get picks #TrustTheLosses
Looks like Vivek read Tony’s article today and realized how much money Vlade’s cost him.
Can we please hold a normal GM candidate search and hire someone who can actually draft?
Tony’s next article: “Vivek can’t afford to not hold a normal GM candidate search.”
And for Tony’s third in the trilogy
-Vivek can’t afford being the owner of the Kings
Joe Dumars and Vivek will be choosing our next GM…
At least they aren’t just going to run with Dumars.
Oh fuck.
Well…. uh….
Oh you sweet summer child!
…
I can’t find the article, but I swear Vlade was essentially in charge of hiring a new GM when Pete quit. Then they just decided to demote/promote Vlade from VP to GM. I believe Vlade’s original plan was to replace Pete with Ryan West or Kiki vande-however spell it.
HR media releases are just the best. Also, I see it’s just the samo samo with this group. Glad to see any hope of being relevant left the building.
No, that’s not an anti Dumars take. I just don’t think that’s how the hiring process should go.
100% the right move. now we just need to take our time and hire the right GM
Looks like Walton is staying for now. Also the right move at least till we have a new GM.
https://twitter.com/sam_amick/status/1294401131641098240?s=19
Start fresh, or just keep Vlade around because, what difference does it make?
For now sure. Makes no sense to fire Walton yet. If the new GM wants to, hopefully he is allowed. I hope he or she does.
likely he’s here for one more year. It gives the new GM some time to scope things out and it’s the perfect get out of jail free card after season one. His/her real critique will start year two.
I don’t think keeping Luke around even for the GM search is the right move. If I’m a qualified GM and the owner is telling me they want to consider keeping the same coach and roster that had losing streaks of 5, 8, and 6 last season I’m not even getting on the flight. 7 of our 9 top rotation players are under contract for next season, so why would we expect a different outcome this time?
Let someone who knows what their doing start with the cleanest slate possible.
Eh, I think the idea should be that we aren’t going to make any major decisions until the new GM can be involved.
And I think that’s the right way to go.
Bring in the new GM and let HIM make the decision about how and when to move on from Walton.
Agreed
Hypothetical If-He-Never-Got-Fired-And-Still-Worked-His-Radio-Show-At-KHTK-GRANT:
(whispers) “Did he leave town already? He did?”
(talks into broadcast microphone): “Folks, today is a good day for the Sacramento Kings. They’ve gotten rid of who I believe is responsible for the Kings missing the playoffs.”
Best news since the day we drafted Fox. Unfortunately it’s 2 years too late and I don’t have faith in Dumars or Vivek to choose the right GM. Plus, looks like another situation where we hire a coach before the GM.
Third time’s the charm.
Also, love the timing of the organization to leak this on a late Friday afternoon.
“We find it’s always better to fire people on a Friday. Studies have statistically shown that there’s less chance of an incident if you do it at the end of the week.” – The Bobs
We are going with Dumar ..
At least they sometimes understand how PR works.
I’m grateful that they didn’t get together a bunch of analytics nerds and make a 2-part video out of making their decision that ended up with “Stauskas Rocks!”
imagine peja getting named as the next gm
You can’t make me
I’ll bet right now that there is not a new GM in place in time for the draft, which takes place October 16. Dumars and Vivek will make the call.
It’s two months, they ought to be able to investigate and meet with potentials over that time frame. It can be done quickly without rushing.
That being said, they can take a full year if they end up making the right hire.
it is supposed to be a weak draft, so that helps.
This draft and our front office will be a good match.
And roster
which is why we will defy the odds and win the lottery for the #1 spot.
That means we need better people in place. Not that it matters less.
Glad he’s gone.
Terrified of who’s next.
Hard to be overly optimistic when Vivek is still making the next hire and Matina is still in his ear…
Yay? ð¬
There is a God! Dumars will start an extensive search for a New GM. The New GM will most likely want his own coach. Walton has to know his days are numbered.
It’s horrifying to think that they could hire a new General Manager who does not have the power to fire the head coach.
Very on-brand, though.
BILLBOARD FOR THE WIN!
Quick, get the “Draft Doncic!” billboard up!!!
maybe we should keep the billboard, as a way to giving message to Vivek what he actually should do, who should be hire
Maybe the billboard DID work!
What a joke for a coach he’s been.
According to James Ham, Walton is not Safe.
James Ham
@James_HamNBCS
According to a team source, the Kings will allow the new GM to make a decision on the fate of the staff, including Peja Stojakovic, Ken Catanella and coach Luke Walton.
6:41 PM · Aug 14, 2020
97
56 people are Tweeting about this
Yes!!!
Honestly at this point I’m just going to be happy that Vlade was fired and is gone. Not even gonna think about who our next gm is or how the king’s will handle it
Us King’s fans deserve a moment to celebrate and frankly I will take whatever opportunity I get even if it might be in a little poor taste
This comment aged so fast man…..
I’ll take this as a victory at this point too. At least it’s something.
For now.
Super cheap tix next season at the G1C!
Peaches and Vlade in the same summer. Great, now Matina
You’re on fire today. LOL
AMEN
Obviously, it’s ok to be skeptical about whom the next Kings GM will be and how this will all work out, but this is a good first step. Anytime we can celebrate proper process, we should!
And I’m not sure they need to fire CheckTheTape right now – just let him know the new GM will make a decision on the coaching position, so enjoy the hot seat for a while.
And it might be a good idea not to be forced to pay off another sexual assault victim (sorry, allegedly pay off an alleged sexual assault victim), because this franchise has a one-tolerance policy for that type of behavior!
Sorry, got off on a tangent there, back to my original point – we should give kudos to Vivek for making the proper first decision on the road to rehabbing this franchise.
Didn’t think this would happen. I’m pleasantly surprised. Well alright let’s see who these GM candidates will be. I’m excited to see who’s out there.
And-1
Hope the position is filled before the draft as well. Should be number 1 priority.
Vivek’s off-season do-to list (in process):
Oh my god oh my god oh my god
ð
and Joe Dumars will conduct a search for a permanent replacement for GM!!
am I dreaming? Is it April?
Glad we can move on as fans.
I can’t help but to think this has been in the planning for a while. Especially since the local media had picked up a little steam and suddenly felt it was time to start talking about Vlades failings.
#HereWeBillboard
Hat tip to you G-naps, as the initiator of #HereWeBillboard.
I was just one small piece of the larger effort.
Now, Vivek, find someone to do a GM search and don’t outright hire Dumars as the GM. Like WTF. Go all in and hire someone outside the org
So next question – does Carmichael Dave take off the early part of next week to get his thoughts together?
Rob, did you do this?!
OMG!
Nope – found it on line.
Love this!
Vlade had to go. But the larger problem is the terrible culture created within this franchise. The next GM has to be given the authority to destroy it and replace it with one centered around creativity, performance expectations and accountability. Perhaps, a complete reorganization with a new President of Basketball Operations, with a GM who reports to them, both from the outside. I’ve said this before, but offer Myers or Popovich or Ujiri or Spoelstra, some like that, an ownership share to be President of Basketball Operations. It would give the franchise immediate credibility, and enable the team to attract top flight executive talent.
But Vivek and the owners would have to pay for them.
Spoelstra would be sweet. The next Pat Riley.
I think fans would love Spoelstra. Young, tough, no nonsense, very knowledgeable about the game and he would instill these values in the organization. I think he would move a lot of our players elsewhere, too. It would be get with the program or get traded.
Getting Spoelstra to leave Miami will be impossible. Especially if Pat Riley is still around.
Well, yes, all of the people I mentioned are impossible for some reasons or another, first and foremost, because it would be the Kings wanting to hire them. That’s why I think the team really needs to offer a slice of ownership to get exceptional, transformative candidates.
Thanks Vlade. I hated Pete, and appreciated you trying to help. I appreciate you stepping down at the right time even more.
My only thought goes to Jason Jones’ quote today, about GM candidates not wanting to work in Sacramento as they felt they were more qualified than Vlade. I can’t see that happening with Dumars. I don’t love the guy, but if his role is picking a GM, I suspect he will be able to coax more people because of his seniority and record. We’ll see.
BREAKING: Magic Johnson hired to replace Vlade Divac as GM of the Sacramento Kings.
(sarcasm font)
BREAKING: KEVIN Johnson hired t replace Vlade Divac as GM of the Sacramento Kings.
(nausea font)
BREAKING: Joe Dumars’ buddy Isiah Thomas hired to replace Vlade Divac as GM of the Sacramento Kings.
(WTF font)
BREAKING: Joe Dumars hires Isiah Thomas to take over Kings GM duties. Bill Laimbeer hired as new coach. Luke Walton promoted to minority owner next to Shaquille O’Neal.
….Kanye West and Kim Kardashian hired as Kings Row Seat Ambassadors.
………Slamson fired for missing playoffs.
Jerry Reynolds was not a good GM. (Nice man, but he was a below average GM.). Yet, he is far and away the second best GM among the six the Kings have employed in Sacramento. Let that wash over you for a moment
Can confirm, 2nd best. Ran into him at the draft party in 2018. I asked him who he would have drafted. He said Luka. The man is of the people.
Had to happen but I can’t help but feel empty. I don’t really see a good path forward for this team and I don’t know of any GM that could possibly get out of the hole that Divac and the rest of the FO put the franchise in.
KAAHHNN!
Wonder how this affects us re-signing Fox. Was hoping he would get signed to an extension and then Vlade leaves. This just adds another reason why Fox wouldn’t want to be here anymore.
He seems like a smart young man, and the Kings are likely to max extend him – so get that first, then work on getting out.
His house in Folsom is pending, either moving up, or moving out. My guess is up.
I think firing Vlade gives the Kings a better chance of keeping Fox. Fox knows the team was going nowhere with Vlade. But it is imperative that the team hire a quality replacement that will motivate him to stay. And that’s not Dumars.
The message Fox sent to Walton about the team “not knowing what it was supposed to be doing” landed squarely on Divac, as well.
Yeah, I don’t think that’s imperative at all. Fox is good, but not nearly good enough to make major organizational decisions based on. Get the best GM with the best vision possible. If Fox gets on board with that, great. If not, move him. This isn’t LeBron or Steph or Durant or Luka or Giannis we’re talking about.
How do you figure?
Vlade will be remembered for the great seasons he had as a player, and being part of a team that showed the world how great basketball can be. I speculate that his lack of success as a GM are the fault of him being such a nice guy that he allowed the universe to push the franchise into being a farm team for the nba.
My first comment here.
I had almost, almost, given up hope. Today is a good day.
Yesterday I was hiking down from Lewis Lake at about 11,900′ and came across a young hiker with a Sacramento State t-shirt on. He is a huge Kings fan also and both of us were commiserating in the hypoxia zone the state of the Kings affairs, recognizing Vlade had to go and Walton too. He is simply overmatched. Nice fella. We talked about past teams, players and some of the current players they do. We both lamented the incredibly horrific miss in not drafting Luka.
I am hopeful. Again.
However, Walton has to go, too.
It’s always great to you see you commenting, HoustonJP.
Thank you Kosta. Hope. It’s gotten me a long way being a Kings fan. Now I hope Luke recognizes he is in a pickle and decides to move along. I wonder if Joe talked to the team leaders about Luke before the announcement on Vlade and what I am reading now about Luke getting an additional year. No business does that after watching the product on the floor this year.
Seconded! Hi, HoustonJP!
Howdy Rik. Keep up the good comments. Always enjoy them.
Nice to see you here JP. Cheers.
Thank You Michael, good to see familiar names and read about the future.
What is “two people who are gone because of the incompetence of Vlade Divac.”
My thoughts are that there is no immediate fix for this team. If the Kings lock up this core then they are committed to a team that likely can’t make the playoffs. I compare this to a homeowner that tried to fix something but made it wise so now it will take a real pro to correct the mistakes and fix the original problem. Sadly this could take at least three more losing seasons.
I’ll gladly take 2-3 seasons of Top 5 picks. SIgn me up. Build something sustainable for once in this franchise’s history.
There is no immediate fix, but a hard tank, cleaning house and accumulating assets and a high pick in next year’s deep draft would be a good start.
And remember, nobody is untradeable!
I 100% agree.
I disagree. stop being a farm team for the nba. you are falling into the same trap.
NaFT
Fun times ahead.
“… as the team severely regressed under Walton’s leadership.”
This is a popular narrative but I don’t think it’s right. Before this season began, folks like Pelton and Hollinger forecast a drop in record compared with 2019-20 — they predicted around 32 to 35 wins, compared with 39 last year. This had absolutely nothing to do with the change from Joerger to Walton. It was based on the roster. The 39 wins last year reflected some close game success and, especially, a much lower than average number of games lost due to injury or rest.
I’m not saying that Luke is a good coach. Probably not, in the long run. But they didn’t regress under his leadership. They did about as well as they should, given the roster. I think he is a victim of very inflated pre-season expectations.
Vivek hired someone with zero from office experience to run the front office, apparently hoping that the good vibes around Vlade would provide positive PR. Shame on him. Despite lots of evidence that Vlade wasn’t the answer, rather than admitting his mistake Vivek doubled down on Vlade, year after year. Shame on him.
If we’re doling out blame, I’d assign a very large portion to Vivek, a much smaller one to Vlade (HE didn’t hire himself) and I’d give Walton an incomplete.
Did you watch Walton coach this year, because I watched a ton of games and didn’t see Luke do much coaching.
Or even just watch his post-game pressers. Didn’t seem to be a whole lot of there there.
I admit that I didn’t watch nearly as much as you guys likely did. Maybe I’d agree if I had. I did see him a lot with the Ws and Lakers, and thought he was a mixed bag. I just think that some folks way overrate the talent on this team. I’m not sure that there is a less talented group in the west. So from where I sit, they did well to win as much as they did,
I’m probably being harder on him because I just have a visceral dislike, but he seemed just as average as many of the generic coaches we’ve brought in over the years.
Joerger, who I disliked as well, grudgingly impressed me with the on-court product. It felt like they were a more blended, cohesive basketball team. Didn’t feel like that was the case this season, but obviously it was a weird year
They clearly regressed, objectively. The 39 wins last season ended up pretty close to expected, based on their offensive and defensive ratings. Considering they underperformed recordwise down the stretch last season, they were pretty close to a 39 win team based on the overall metrics.
We can talk about injuries I suppose, but the Kings weren’t especially injury prone relative to the league. And if anything, Bagley being healthy last year and unhealthy this year probably helped Walton and hurt Joerger.
So the fact that he took the fastest team in the league and thought he’d model it after the Patric Ewing New York Knicks had no impact on performance or record?
Lose Walton could eff up a wet dream.
Good.
Here’s my prediction. Either Dumars or unknown GM gives Luke the ultimatum of playoffs net year or you are gone. Kings flounder for another year but he will be replaced next summer. The clean slate of Kings brass won’t be until the summer of 2021, but at least we are on the path.
If An established/successful GM is brought in, I would be shocked to see that Said GM keep Walton. Now, if you’re talking Dumars taking the job or bringing in someone inexperienced and/or with a mediocre track record, I could see them Keeping Luke. Someone like Jerry West or Greg Popovich will fire Luke yesterday.
I think they keep Walton another year just to save face and save on money. He might be gone by the deadline if the Kings stink (they will), but we will have a new coach this time next year.
This is my expectation. That Luke will at least open next season as the coach.
Hinkie?
https://twitter.com/MattGeorgeKHTK/status/1294406522953293825
I’d pick him up from the airport and work for free till he got his staff set up.
Can we repurpose that billboard to be outside of his house?
#HereWeHinkie!?
Let’s do it.
Give him a blank check and sign a “no meddling agreement”
Dumars is likely? Wow
HIstory repeating itself.
Al little off topic, but as a result of this I kind f wonder how Bagley is doing mentally right now. He has to be living with the thought that he is turning out to be a huge draft bust. He has to know by now that the fans don’t have any faith in him, and that his being drafted really just got the GM fired. He has obvious issues with his body being frail and not staying healthy enough to play… there is a lot not going right for this kid. I sort of wonder if he can come back from all of this in any meaningful way.
He is also (very likely) going to suffer the same development hell that DMC did… a merry go round of 3 coaches in his first 3 or 4 years. That can’t help him either. I really wanted the guy to do well, but at this point I give him less than 5% chance of playing on a second contract in Sacramento.
I agree. He is just a kid, and I’m sure he’s plugged into social media so he hears all the noise. I’m really rooting for him next year to bounce back. At this point, if he’s not a star, I’ve accepted it, but I wish for him a long a successful basketball career.
Me too. But I have serious doubts that it will happen. I don’t doubt that he can play in the league for a long time, so if his expectations for “success” can be tempered, then maybe. But for a guy who was saying he was going to be the league MVP… I just don’t see him living up to his own hype or expectations or even really getting close.
Yup, Sometimes I get some strong Stromile Swift/Antonio McDyess/Keyon Martin vibes from Bagley. They all had tons of athleticism and post scoring ability, but once an injury or two set in, they were average but solid NBA players.
I’m still holding out hope bagley can become a pre-injury amare.
I remember a story about the Grizzlies team bus hitting a small bump and somebody on board yelled “SOMEBODY CHECK ON STROMILE!” I’ve thought about that a few times with regards to Bagley.
McDyess & Martin were far better than Swift. Bagley could be as good as Swift (or better), but I doubt he’ll be as good as prime McDyess or prime Martin.
I’d kill for him to become pre-injury McDyess.
Hopefully, the new GM can trade him away…………no more Bustley for this team, please.
As we have J. Parker
Yeah, I don’t give two shits about Bagley any more. People need to STFU about the young thing … he and Luka were born two weeks apart. Vlade can take Bagley with him for all I care. The 2018 draft was such an obvious no brainer that a box of petrified cat shit would have been smart enough to pick Luka, and Vlade was ultimately not as smart as a box of petrified cat shit. Fuck these bumbling idiots, they got exactly what they deserved.
I think that Bagley was more into getting picked in the draft than playing in Sacramento. So I doubt that he is very enthusiastic right now. But, if I were him, I’d be focusing on trying to understand how to play team basketball in the NBA because, right now, he doesn’t.
I meant Bagley getting picked HIGH in the draft.
Bye Vlade. Don’t let the door hit you.
Vivek needs to be on the phone with the top 5 most respected Assistant GM’s in the league.
Offer them the opportunity to run their own show, give them full autonomy to clean house, and build what they want with resources and support.
This shit is not hard.
Oh, I don’t know about that. Apparently, it’s really hard (for Vivek) because he has been screwing this up for years and years. I think it’s kind of funny that he has to eat that extension he foolishly gave Vlade. Maybe at some point he will realize he is not very good at being an owner. I doubt it, but I can hope.
It’s not hard, but it is expensive and less glamorous.
Heeey, nice, congrats guys! Surprised they did it with so many years left on his deal, but I know this is what everyone has been wanting. Maybe I’ve misremembered how much time Vlade had left though!
Vlade had 3 years left on his contract, so the timing is surprising.
Surprised! This was an inevitable at some point but didn’t expect it now.
I said this on the earlier thread but frankly this does little for me until I am assured by the replacement. If this team doesn’t hire an analytically focused GM, and we dont enter a contemporary front office structure all this is pointless.
And if anyone is wondering Joe Dumars does not check those boxes. Spare yourself the need of hindsight. It would be a terrible permanent hire as no other team did it despite his best efforts, or would with the exception of us.
Happy to see Vlade go as much as anyone but this is the Kings. A new commitment to another poor hire with no interview process, is far more soul crushing and symptomatic of the larger problems. This is an opportunity for course correction, but currently thats all it is.
Y’all are look at this wrong. Odds favor that the Kings cannot hire a great GM / even if they did, he or she can fix this mess. After 3 GM hires, two non basketball presidents, and many coaches, the public will finally start to revolt against Vivek. Removing the popular GM was a big step in the process but it’s not even close to ripping up the amount of rot needed to have a chance.
(fart noises)
We need someone qualified to be making basketball decisions, is that DUmars? IDK, I just know it wasn’t Vlade. And I disagree with those who think we need to tear everything down again, however we do need at least 1 more tanking season which is going to require trading everyone not named Fox and Bagley.
Part of my off-season dream was running the whole next year with FOX/Justin James/Daquan Jeffries/Bagley/getting major minutes.
This 1 year tank will provide four different things that would be beneficial, 1) allow Bagley to establish himself as a raw stats 20/11 guy (good for evaluation and regaining value), 2) see if James and Jeffries can be role players/ 3 and D role, 3) Provide playing time for the rookies, and 4) have a high pick in the loaded 2021 draft.
Trade ideas-Buddy for Horford+Thybulle. Harrison Barnes for James Johnson+2nd rd pick. Holmes and Bjelica can be a throw in to raise any of these guys value, and Bogi is tough to call. I might see if I can S&T him for Kuzma.
Starters: Fox/Thybulle/Jeffries/Bagley/Horford.
Bench: Malachi Flynn (pick#41)/Justin James/ Patrick Williams(#12)/Johnson/Vernon Carey or whatever Center has highest upside at (pick #35).
End of rotation: Kyle Guy/Trevelin Queen (pick 50.)
Check the 2021 draft, to 10ish players look talented.
Thybulle is difficult to trade for………even if we took back Horford’s bad contract……
I would also target Donte DiVincenzo
Thybulle looks like a good young defender, but hes already 23 and is really limited. I don’t think asking for him with Horford is unreasonable at all, it would be an even deal imo.
I am open to a lot of young guys in the league. Divencenzo would be good, Thybulle, I also like Darius Bazley from OKC. I would also be ok with a future first round pick.
Divencenzo would be fantastic. I would also look into the Heat’s Tyler Herro/ Kendrick Nunn for Hield.
Why would the Heat do that though? Herro is basically the younger cheaper version and between he and Robinson they have no need for Hield.
Bazley is a good target. If we’re talking about a Hield trade, the challenge would be matching salaries since the only big salaries the Thunder have are Paul, Adams, and to a lesser degree, Schroder.
Hield for Adams and Bazley works. We may have to add a decent 2nd rounder or something to that. But it’s interesting to me since Adams expiring could likely be moved at the deadline to a team looking to clear cap space.
Fox is a great player. A number One foundational piece on a championship caliber team? I don’t think so. Not from what I have seen in 3 seasons. Fox, can be a nice second or third option on a playoff team. But, I certainly don’t see a GAME CHANGER: Curry, Doncic, CP3, Tatum, Harden, Lillard talent, at all. Fox Could be like a John Wall/Conley type. I see Bagley being more like Derrick Favors in his prime(If he stay healthy. Not versatile enough to play in Today’s NBA PF and also too limited to play at starting center. Bagley gets injured again next year and the Kings probably won’t resign him.
A complete and utter blow up is needed. If Fox is part of the Kings moving forward, Great. If he can be moved for picks/talent, the new GM will determine that. If Fox is traded by a competent GM, then I am ok with that, as well.
I agree hes like a 2nd/3rd star, but he is the type of talent you tank for. There is no guarantee we would ever be able to draft a young player as good as him again.
The good thing is I believe we could tank with him, he wouldn’t be able to carry a bad team, and if we tore it down while keeping Fox/Bagley we would just be a bad team. If we find a role for Justin James/Daquan Jeffries, great.
If you trade Fox/Bagley, your looking at another 6-7 years of bad bad basketball, if we can hit with this upcoming pick, and tank for another top 5ish pick next year, this might be enough young talent to actually be competitive moving forward.
That obviously depends on what you get back and how the subsequent moves look. That said, obviously it looks different from Sacramento but rebuilds, even from the absolute studs, rarely take that long for a competent GM.
The famous Hinkie “process” took 3 seasons. And that’s with some big draft misses. The 2015-16 Nets came back from perhaps the worst position imaginable in 3 seasons.
True about maybe not being as long as 6-7 years, but the way this franchise hires people I would expect that until proven wrong.
I just think with the lottery odds so different now compared to before, you don’t really have to tank to be the absolute worst team. Even if we tank by not having qualified role players/starters for two years we are still in better shape by keeping Fox and Bagley (if he can turn his career around). I’m not in favor of trading Fox for what maybe 2 draft picks? if I can get Michael Porter Jr… Everything is negotiable I just don’t see us getting the better end of the deal by trading Fox.
By the way I do like the Steven Adams/Bazley for Buddy deal mentionef above.
Luka would have been a nice #1 Alpha for this team.
#HereWeHinkie
Does this mean my fire Divac spams on Kings social media worked?
Lol didn’t Vlade block you on Instagram or something saying that to him?
Yea he did. I kept posting Luka stats on his IG. It was Luka’s 1st year.
Hey Vlade,
“Thanks for the one year paid vacation!”
That Amick/Jones article has some wow nuggets.
bottom line, this was more Vivek being Vivek than a calculated decision by either side.
Link:
https://mobile.twitter.com/sam_amick/status/1294449588737204224
Reader’s digest:
Vlade was happy with the direction of the team and had no intention of stepping down.
Vivek calls Vlade and proposes co-GMing with Dumars.
In response to that lame offer, Vlade makes like Seacrest and is out.
Thanks for the cliffs notes. If true, one could surmise that Joe Dumars will be our next GM.
LOL, just the other day Vivek said he never makes the same mistake twice.
And then he goes and makes the same mistake twice.
He already tried that crap with Vlade and Petey D.
Did he not want to hurt Vlade’s feelings by not firing him?
According to Ham the new GM will make decisions on the coach, Peja, Ken, etc.
As it should be.
Haven’t been here in a while … anyone stiiiiiiiiilllll defending the Bagley pick?
No one, not a soul.
I like how within a day of arriving in the bubble Marvin got hurt again, and then within that same day or two, they show that clip of Luka kicking the ball soccer style through the hoop from like halfcourt. This is a nightmare that will literally never end.
Matt George
I learned a long time ago not to trust anyone with two first names.
Just when I thought you couldn’t get any dumber, you go and do something like this… and totally start a rebuild of the roster and franchise culture!
Which is what is needed now after Vlade’s tenure.
I hope we draft the BPA or acquire future assets, hire a competent GM and make clear the team’s identity with a focused path forward.
I really wish Peaches was still on the radio so someone would make him eat his words. Every other team drafts the best player available, it is time that we do too.
This is a step in the right direction, but I would rather have had a new coach for next year than a new GM. No reason to expect anything different than what we saw in the bubble as long as Luke Walton’s “coaching” and wandering the sidelines with that vacant stare. Hearing that Luke will be coaching next year totally killed any joy that would have come from hearing Vlade was gone.
Too little, too late. I’ve already given up. Already dropped my Kings related twitter follows so I don’t even have to deal with Kangz BS (or yogurt pie takes). Haven’t missed the NBA at all.
My prediction:
Vivek hires Joe Dumars as VP of Basketball Operations.
Joe Dumars hires Ken Catanella as GM.
Ken Catanella fires Walton at the end of next season and hires a recently laid-off Brett Brown.
I like Brett brown… could go for a better player development team than joe and ken.
Ffs, fire Walton and bring the one coach we’ve had recent success with, that doesn’t take crap from players and that also has an eye for needed roster pieces
Dave Joeger could really have gotten far. At times his methods were questionable, but we played exciting bball.
Dave is looking for his next gig to bury Sac. Pelicans, Houston, Nets, etc. He would never come back here. If not because of Vlade, because of VIvek.
Personally, I love seeing guys who have been screwed by this dumbass org, come back here and beat the shit out of us. I hope joerger and Giles come back next year and light us up.
Next year will be a disaster. Doesn’t matter who’s coaching.
A Disaster will be preferable to mediocrity. I would assume that since we’ve traded away a majority of the team for future picks, expiring contracts and developmental talent. Mediocrity has been the mainstay of this organization for the Past 14 years. If we endure 2-3 years of 15-20 wins a year, it only means the Kings finally have a competent GM. Building and Sustaining a franchise to be contenders for the future.
Dude, I just got home from hiking all day with my brother, and now I have 239 comments to go through! I won’t be sleeping early tonight.
My Kangz hoodie arrives soon! Just in time to wear it for this occasion.
Time to start tanking for Emoni Bates, aka durant 2.0, in 2022!!
I went into a deep dive a couple of nights ago to see if there was a future GM candidate that had ties to either Sac, Golden State, or Joe Dumars. One name that met 2 of the 3 was Clippers asst GM Mark Hughes.
If Dumars stayed in as VP, brought in Hughes as GM, and Hughes hired D’Antoni or Kenny Atkinson- both of whom he worked with as Director of Player Personnel for the Knicks- I could see a Kings organization that MAY have the look of competency moving forward.
Yes= Atkinson; no= d’antoni.
Thank you Vlade for your time as a player here. You helped Sac get on the map (for good reasons) for a short while, and that does matter. But your time as GM needed to end. Experience and contacts in that field help, and while at first I was hopeful, sadly the results didn’t work. Good luck in your future endeavors, keep being a great ambassador for basketball, and Sac will (most likely) still be a home for you (after some time apart).
As for future GM’s, I’m okay with Hinkie and a total rebuild/blow up in order to get as much value in top 3 or top 5 picks. Only player I’d keep would be Fox, all others for sure we should at least see what value they might have. We’ve already had this many unsuccessful attempts at a rebuild, what’s one more under someone who actually has done it once before? And might I say set Philly up for the success they are enjoying now? Granted, Embid’s foot injuries needed to be gone through as well, but we have our own version in Bagley, who I hope can at last be a 15/10 guy. That’s not living up to his draft hype, but at least it’s better than being injured all the time.
Luke must go, the sooner the better. Even if this years result is actually accurate and we just have this crappy of a team, watching the games and seeing his lack of team preparedness, lineups or poor substitutions, horrible pre/post game pressers that in effect say to fans that he doesn’t really know what’s going on on the floor until he watches it another time – all this shows he is not the coach for a team that is trying to develop talent in order to get back into the playoffs. Maybe he is nothing more than an average coach. I can live with that, but just not on our team. He has to be on the hot seat from today on, and he has to know it.
I’ve grown to like many of the players on our team, and will continually root for them whether they are here or some other team (as well as a certain player who-shall-not-be-named), and maybe some of them could be kept to build this team correctly. But probably several of them will have to be traded, released or free to sign elsewhere in order for the team to be relevant again. There is talent on this team, but we didn’t use it correctly and didn’t have the right coach.
I’m happy that the right decision has been made regarding one person in power. I’m not sure if I’m eager to see the results of future decisions, based on the past.
Hard to believe a guy that always carried around a rolled up piece of paper had no idea what he was doing. Just ahead of his time I guess.
Yeah keeping Walton sucks but I figure we just lose our way into a top 5 pick next year, get a new coach, and who knows, maybe things start turning around.
Trade Buddy and probably Bogi, let them be free, get some picks and build around Fox. I don’t think Bagley will be a star but give him a couple more years to see.
After the initial happiness of the necessary move has worn off, and after reading all the noise about what will happen next, I am not very confident that Vivek has learned much from the past and that we will look better going forward.
Rooting for this team is so mentally exhausting, and the payoff is minimal.
I will see how this plays out, but with much skepticism and little optimism. Perhaps I can tone down my emotional involvement to a minimum.
History repeating itself. All I see goiing on here.
Very likely, yeah. Deflating realization.
Good luck finding a new GM under the premise that he/she will not be allowed to hire a new coach but will have to deal with Walton instead. So Dumars will have to do it since no other candidate with a working brain will consider this “opportunity”. Great.
I think the idea is to give the new GM a year to evaluate the roster and the coaching staff before deciding on Walton, which sounds okay-ish to me.
I would normally find it hard to believe that the GM would not have the power to replace Walton, but it’s the Kings, so who knows?
That´s a good point and after reading through the comments I agree. I initially took it as Walton being safe indefinitely. If this means he gets to bring in a draft pick while the new GM basically tears down this mess of a roster, I´m good with that. And if there´s one thing I really trust him with, it´s losing games. Let´s not kid ourselfes, next season will suuuuck anyway.
Yup. Which would be fine, if there is a plan and someone we trust to execute it.
As a lifer Kings fan, now living in Dallas, this has been interesting to watch. Luka Love is all over TX as I watch Mavs fan relish in their prized star and wonder what could’ve been for the Kings.
With Vlade finally out, I can only hope this is the beginning to the Kings turnaround. Fox and Bagley (assuming he gets right) is a good start. Find a GM and coach who decide to use this teams strength (speed) and get out and run. Walton has to go, no question.
Let’s get on with this thing.
So how did Jerry West play as a kid?
Hello Kings’ fans. I just joined this site to give you some basketball knowledge. As a kid growing up, I watched Jerry West play as he was my favorite player. So I’ve been around for awhile living in Oakland before moving to Sacramento and now living in Roseville. I’ve watched a lot of basketball starting with the Oakland Athletic League high school kids to college to the NBA. I know who can play and who can’t. Joe Dumars has won a championship keeping a Shaq/Kobe team from getting a 4th championship, something the Chris Webber teams didn’t while having better talent. Yes, Dumars did screw up the Darko pick. But I could go on and on with all the Kings draft busts, Jimmer over Klay, Thomas Robinson over Lilliard, McLemore over CJ McCollum, drafting another shooting guard Stauskus the following year, and center/power forward Willie Cauley-Stein after that. Do you get my point? None of these guys are with the team. Dumars is the best GM the Kings could hope for that is willing to come and work for this owner. You have to be able to evaluate talent so you can draft and trade to build your team. Dumars has done that with Chauncey, Richard Hamilton, Rasheed, Ben Wallace, and Tayshaun Prince. I’ll live with that roster even with the Darko mistake because they won a ring with him on the roster. Dumars is proven and I was glad Vivek brought him in as an advisor. Divac was no match for Dumars in talent evaluation. For those of you knocking Dumars for picking Darko as the main reason not to let him run your team, you need a reality check. Joe Dumars would be the best Sacramento Kings GM since Geoff Petrie. I’ve lived here almost 20 years since moving from Oakland and the last few years have been tough to watch. If it wasn’t for my Warriors rebirth, I would go crazy watching the Kings’ futility. The West is so tough with Dallas, Memphis, and Phoenix on the rise, not to mention the Warrors will be back next year. Kings’fans should be elated if Dumars wants to build this team. But it will take time becaue the West is stacked. I would love for the Kings to be relevant as it is the only pro sports team in town and I like going to games in that fabulous arena. They could have been in Seattle. Sacramento should be grateful that Vivek bought and kept the team here. After all the blunders made, bringing on Joe Dumars is the best move Vivek has made since he bought the team. Kings’ fans need to be realistic and be happy to get someone with Joe Dumars credentials. He has a championship, the Kings don’t.
ok, first of all. Thanks for your thought.
And you are correct that Joe Dumars built a championship team, but that was 2004 (long times ago), the league had changed a lot for 16 years. Will he be still up-to-date, to build a playoff team with the Kings ??
Is there any GM candidate that you would ranks higher than Joe Dumars ?
(If so, then why not just let Joe Dumars to hire him, rather than just letting him to be the actual GM?)
Obviously there are other guys ranked higher than Joe Dumars. But can you get them? I love Sam Presti. His talent evaluation is impressive considering he has a cheap owner and is in Oklahoma City. But they can’t get him. Dumars is already here. He can bring in Chauncey Billups and groom him.Joe is long in the tooth but you can’t take that championship away from him. That was his team. Yes, there was mistakes for sure, but he is better than anyone the Kings have had in a long time. The West is absolutely stacked. There are teams ahead of the Kings. I just want to see improvement.
Dumars also left the Pistons in shambles. He signed Josh Smith to a $54M deal pre-salary cap spike. He traded Khris Middleton and Brandon Knight for Brandon Jennings. He hired Maurice Cheeks and then fired him 50 games later. That team is still trying to dig itself out of the hole Dumars left them in.
It ain’t just the Darko disaster. But replacing the guy who picked Bagley over Luka with the guy who picked Darko over Melo/Wade/Bosh would just be icing on the shit cake.
Dumars was the “retired franchise legend” brought in to revive the team and be a bridge with the former glory days. He’s legitimately sounds like Vlade 2.0. Or actually, Vlade was Dumars 2.0.
“In an attempt to skirt the period of irrelevance that robbed the Pistons of much of the 1990s, Dumars’ post-renaissance approach was to eschew a slow rebuild in lieu of risky trades and free-agent signingsa strategy that backfired spectacularly.”
Ranking Joe Dumars' Worst Moves as Detroit Pistons GM
During his time running the Pistons they rattled off 6 straight ECF appearances, and two straight Finals appearances with one ring. Sure, he left them in the gutter (most GMs do, otherwise they’d still be the GM), but I’d love to have a GM “fail” us into a couple of Finals. To put it another way, his worst years as an executive would be considered average years for the Kings (anywhere from 27 to 32 wins)
I’m not advocating for Dumars to be our next GM, I’d prefer it be in the mold of the “great assistant GM ready to make the leap” type of guy. I’m just saying that you’re selling Dumars incredibly short by comparing his FO resume to Divac.
Sure, I’m not thrilled by the idea of him being the VP of Bball (or even GM), but I definitely don’t hate the idea, and think it would be better than anyone we’ve had in those roles since the early 2000s. Which, admittedly isn’t saying a lot.
LOL icing on the shit cake … truer words have never been spoken.
Looking at that list of Dumars’ Pistons draft picks:
Billups has been up for several basketball executive positions over the last few years and seems to get high praise from media types regarding his potential. However, I’m not aware of his having actually served in an executive capacity.
Prince, on the other hand, has been with the Grizzlies front office since 2017, initially as an advisor and currently as their VP of Basketball Affairs (whatever that means).
Both are reportedly under consideration for the GM position with the Pistons, so I’d expect Dumars to at least give both a call.
I find it interesting that John Hammond was also part of that FO. And Hammond leaving correlated with the Piston’s fall. Meanwhile Hammond went on to build a winner in Milwaukee and has seen some early success with the Magic. It makes me wonder how much influence he had in Detroit while he was there.
I read this, and I thought, fantastic, this guy is going to Kingsplain to us, the great and ignorant unwashed, what we’ve been overlooking during our decades of loyal fanship to one of the worst organizations in sports. But, in a rare moment of benevolence, considered that this just might have been a really bad start, and that the massive, single paragraph might have some useful insight.
My pessimism is undefeated.
Hinkie would be cool. I’d be surprised if we really got him and he started blowing up the team ð.
top dream scenario – Presti from OKC (Let me dream)
Rocket’s Morey would be cool too. I feel like he is maxed out and stuck in Hou with that team. Maybe we could sweeten his exit plans.
Kenny Atkinson was fired. I thought he had the Nets coming up before KD and Irving got there.
REPLY FAIL.
No respect to Vlade for not voluntarily stepping down and thinking the direction of the team was good
i can see an argument for Dumars over a newbie, but he better understand the concept of rebuilding
Is there really still a clamor for another coach?
do those fans understand the team should be rebuilding and getting high picks for the forseeable?
Two things that made me happy this weekend.
Vlade is gone and LaBradford is back (with a loaded credit card)!
Sheesh. We need Hinkie. He would run circles around Joe or Vlade.
For those interested. Check out this insightful podcast with Hinkie.
http://investorfieldguide.com/hinkie/
Hinkie, really? This guy had so many high picks. He drafted Embiid 3rd pick (2014), Jahlil Okafor 3rd pick (2015), and accuired Nerlens Noel, 6th pick (2013). Two mistakes with early picks and waiting 2 years for Embiid. Hinkie’s sucessor, Bryan Colangelo drafted Ben Simmons and Markelle Fultz. There is a reason Hinkie hasn’t been hired yet.
Lol and just like that, there goes your credibility.
You do realize he’s the best player in that draft….right?
April 6, 2016, Sam Hinkie stepped down from his positions with the 76ers. Ben Simmons was drafted June 2016 as the projected 1st overall pick.
For what its worth, I consider this the best possible ending to the King’s bubble experience. They could have won 2 more games and maybe Vlade would have still been here.
Badge Legend