Following a disappointing first season in the NBA, Sasha Vezenkov has reportedly asked out of the Kings organization. The initial report was that Sasha informed the Kings he was not returning:
???? Sasha Vezenkov has informed Sacramento Kings that he doesn’t intend to return for the 2nd year of his contract. For now it’s open whether he will continue his career in NBA or he will decide to return to Europe. @eurohoopsGR @Eurohoopsnet pic.twitter.com/AQOnejjMFX
— Mihalis Stefanou ???? (@mstef80) June 8, 2024
But realistically that’s not how this works. Vezenkov is under contract for next season, so we’re either looking at the two sides agreeing to a buyout, or (more likely) a trade.
He can't just unilaterally decide to leave the Kings. They'd have to waive him. He's got a guaranteed year at $6.6M for 2024-25 and then the Kings hold a team option for 2025-26 for $6.9M. Sacramento controls this process, not Vezenkov.
Retiring then signing overseas might not… https://t.co/vD3SUya3RP
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) June 8, 2024
Sasha had a rough first season in the NBA as he dealt with injuries and inconsistent playing time. He’s certainly not the first European star to struggle with the transition to the NBA.
Sasha is owed $6.6M next season, and a team option the following year, essentially allowing him to be treated like an expiring contract for trade purposes.
We’ll continue to monitor this situation, but it’s likely we’ve seen the last of Sasha Vezenkov in a Kings uniform. Such a disappointing end to a player many of us had been very excited about just a year ago.
My only regret is we never saw him get regular minutes to see what he was capable of. Assuming Brown saw enough to spare us that. If so, then good luck wherever you go Sasha.
Greg unruined the comment section!
Whoopsies
For $6.6m I’m sure that there are teams that will be interested in him as a bench shooter. He’s redundant here, basically sharing the same position with Murray, Barnes & Lyles. He won’t fetch much in return, but he’s moveable.
Guaranteed $6MM for next year. “Hurt” the majority of last season. Stats are garbage for when he did play. Openly telling world he wants to be traded o and doesn’t like it in the USA.
Wonder why teams aren’t begging for him?
Stats are not garbage when he played, our coach just had dog shit rotations and stuck with proven bums
Guy did nothing.
He wants to leave. Never wanted to be here. Let him go.
Beyond five players the rotation was garbage because…well they were garbage. Nothing Brown could do about it.
Such a cop out.
good teams/coaches can absolutely successfully use the likes of davion, sasha, lyles and len
How did it work out?
Good teams have Davion, Sasha, Lyles, Len, for a bench?
Kings depth was trash beyond the top four or five players.
yeah, I agree that other teams will be interested in Sasha. I explained why in the prior thread when this one was blocked for commenting.
that being said, I would not rule out drafting a guy like Baylor Scheierman at 13 based on Sasha not fitting last year. Although they are both lefty snipers who rebound and have high IQ, Baylor has shown he has role versatility.
This is on Mike Brown. I was perplexed all year about the Kings bringing over the euro MVP and not giving him a long look.
The Euro MVP refused to come over for college, when he was drafted, and when the Kings first tried to get him here.
Brown has nothing to do with it. He never wanted to be here.
Emblematic of entire year. What were The Kings thinking? Bringing in practically no one or guys that don’t fit Browns system. Vez. Brown not adjusting.
Team not upgrading Huerter/Barnes etc.
I hope I’m wrong, but this whole year has smelled like Vivac lurking. Throwing in his two cents and or not wanting to pay any money for anything.
I was hoping they were past this.
Last off season was all fringe players. Sasha isn’t even a fringe player. Time to build a real team. The West has clearly passed this team up.
Agree. They should’ve fucking built a team last year. I don’t know what the hell they were thinking. They had a window of opportunity and did nothing.
That’s why it feels like maybe this shit little owner is involved somehow. Maybe not but they better fix this.
this year will tell us everything we need to know about Monte McNair, and Coach Brown.
Suspecting Vivekery is understandable, but IMHO the more likely explanation is that McNair is a very conservative GM whose #1 mantra is “don’t make big mistakes.” It’s why he drafts older, NBA-ready talent, and why he took nearly 2 years to make a big trade. This philosophy is what got the Kings out of the cellar and into the ranks of Teams One Must Take Seriously. The big question here is whether or not McNair now thinks doing nothing, or nothing significant, would be the “big mistake” going forward.
They stood pat last year because they were the #3 seed in the west after not making the playoffs in a gazillion years. Had the coach of the year, clutch player of the year, two all stars, and a very promising rookie who just set the rookie 3 point shooting record. I don’t blame them one bit for rolling it back and expecting them to improve upon what they started the previous year. It just didn’t work out this year. Even though they only finished 2 games worse than last season but amazingly fell 6 spots in the standing.
Now, if they roll it back again this year, we got a problem.
They took a chance on the Euro league MVP and it didn’t work out. It was worth a shot, didn’t work out.
Yep. Relatively cheap roll of the dice. Moving on.
I don’t mind that they took a shot at Sasha, but they essentially did absolutely nothing overall.
Sometimes move don’t work out, and maybe they thought Sasha would help.
Maybe there weren’t good deals out there, or the Kings didn’t have the assets to get something done. I don’t Monte just went on vacation all summer amd didn’t try to make any moves.
….and Brown obviously didn’t want him or like his style I guess.
So, again Sasha is just 1 component (that’s why I said Emblematic) of poor off season and disconnect between GM and coach maybe.
Yeah, this is the main point here, IMO.
A few matters, like the use of Sasha and his fit with the style of play, just seem to indicate that Monte and Brown weren’t fully in lockstep with each other regarding roster construction and style of play. Or they were and then Brown changed his approach, perhaps?
Something feels off, and that is a bit worrying.
Or maybe they were in line and then Brown saw that Sasha was not ready for the speed and physicality of the league, and really struggled defensively?
Brown talked him up a lot in the summer and preseason, and then as the season went on Sasha looked over matched most nights.
Some times you bring in an employee and seebthem in a certain role, and a few weeks or months in to that you realize the person isn’t what you thought and need to move on. That’s what I think happened in this case.
Again, loads of people were struggling defensively early in the season, and Brown didn’t seem to care. He wasn’t noticably worse than other, and seems to have a better idea of team D than others.
His TS% was on par with Keegan, better than Fox, Monk, Huerter, Davion, Kessler Edwards and Duarte.
RB% – better than Keegan, Kessler, Fox, Keon Monk, Huerter, Duarte and Barnes.
The guy could have contributed and it was clear pretty early that Brown didn’t give him any rope. He did the same with Keon. I am quite certain Sasha can fill a role in the NBA, if he’s being used properly. That wasn’t the case here.
Oh, I think Sasha should have been playing more. Apparently Brown didn’t. I think Brown stuck with the players he knew from the previous season until he couldn’t because of injuries.
So much this, numbers show he was a top 8 player on the team and just wasn’t given a shot for who knows why. He will get traded and be a solid player for someone else
I agree. I saw more from Sasha when he was allowed to play than I did from Duarte and some others.
He rebounded, he cut to the hoop, he consistently got steals, or deflected passes.
He was a little slow, but worked within the team’s defense.
What was missing????? Consistent playing time.
Barnes, meanwhile, started every game, even the games he didn’t show up to.
Same goes for Keon. He was obviously a better fit with the starting unit than Huerter. Yet we waited and waited. If Brown had started Keon earlier, Huerter may not have gotten injured.
I’d even argue that wasn’t all Huerter’s fault but how the coach used him.
I think Huerter has a lot to bring to the team. More than Barnes.
I think Brown wasted Sasha for no reason.
I agree and it’s weird for a “spray 3s” coach with no other offensive plan
This is more than just on Brown. It’s an indicator how fucked up the Kings were this year from general manager to coach and smells like owner meddling
why the fuck did they bring in a player that Brown didn’t want to or seemingly didn’t want to utilize? It seemed like there was a disconnect between general manager and coach the whole year.
Vez is just the latest indicator of how poorly this year went. The front office, the owner, and the coach did absolutely nothing to fix the problems that were obviously there.
This is not a good sign at all. They had better get their shit together next year or they’re just gonna fall off the cliff. Last year was a wasted year.
Relax, 2 years ago we would have been tickled pink to win 46 games. This past season didn’t go as planned, but it certainly had nothing to do with Sasha not getting a few more minutes. Fox settling for 3’s instead of going to the hoop. Keegan not taking that next step. Harrison being Harrison. Davion forgetting how to play and defend And of course the injuries down the stretch, especially to Monk. He doesn’t go down and we most likely finish with the same record as last year, if not better and a top 6 playoff seed.
Let’s also admit that the development of Keon was a pleasant surprise and most likely not realized with more minutes from Sasha. Lastly, Domas took a huge step forward and truly became the team leader, and rightfully so.
Please, take a step back from the ledge, take a deep breath, and realize we aren’t as bad off as you think we are. We have some moves that need to be made for sue,but Monte is fully capable of getting it done. Remember, it takes two to tango and we are not that far removed from a GM who made some horrible moves just to be making moves. It’ll be alright man.
100%
Shout out to Greg for doing all the work on this site. Greg is the only one writing and publishing.
Appreciate you Greg.
Yeah, what’s up with that?
All the other writers didn’t make it out of the play in.
So Greg wins? Or loses?
Greg Winninger.
I suspect they all realized they can now, by law, make a minimum of $20/hr at McDonalds.
Greg let the Pornhub subscription lapse at TKH headquarters. It has created…motivation issues.
What is Pornhub?
Mike Brown controls the writer rotation. Prepare to not hear from Greg again until Sept.
It’s too bad Vezie was injured in the last stretch of the year when Trey was also hurt, otherwise he could’ve got some solid run for 2-3 weeks. Brown could have played him more in the beginning the first time Lyles was out, but he was still pretty new and learning the ropes.
Heard conflicting reports about this also, some say Kings approached Sasha first and told him he wouldn’t be a preeminent part of their plans, so not sure which it is?
Either way nobody is hiding it.
I am sure this started last year. He was the darling of the Euro league. Came here and couldn’t get off the bench. He knew he didn’t have it and the Kings coaching staff made that message clear by sitting him.
Went from MVP to on the bench behind G league guys.
But Duarte and Barnes and Huerter did “have it”?
Duarte has nothing.
Barnes is a starter on most teams.
Huerter with a shoulder is 10 times the player Sasha will ever be.
Not saying Sasha is on the same level as Barnes and Huerter. I’m saying for most of the season both of them were invisible yet they were given minutes.
Sasha was not given the same leash, which affected his play and how he is perceived.
Given more time would have only benefitted Sasha. That’s what I believe.
Ultimately, what a waste. They could have used that contract on some other player.
I think the Kings were trying to win. The goal was not to develop Sasha. He didn’t want to come to the NBA so he was convinced with empty promises of playing and hard cash. He was a liability when he was on the floor. Had he come over as a rookie and developed normally he would be fine. He came over at 28 with the idea that he was developed.
Can the Kings relegate him to Stockton?
Playing there will be good for his game and his attitude.
“Discipline will continue until morale improves.”
Mike Brown gave HB way too many minutes and could’ve cut into Huerters more the last two years. He also regressed as a coach last year, bad rotations and adjustments. Sasha may never pan out but should’ve let him cook on offense way more consistently, now we will never know. Players don’t want to be in Sac and it will prevent us from being a contender or even prennial playoff team until we fix it. Our first offseason story is about disfunction.
The few short moments when he could cook he would give up fifty to nine year old. Completely incapable of defense.
This is incorrect.
Almost nobody was playing D in the first 30 games of the season and Brown just let it happen. I actually thought that Sasha held his own better than I expected and also showed flashes of being a good rebounder and team defender. But he didn’t seem to understand Brown’s team D concepts, which isn’t strange, as they were a mystery to me too.
Nobody played defense for about 70 games. Most were capable but chose not to. Sasha isn’t capable of playing defense in the NBA.
Not close to true, trolling at it’s finest
…because MidtownMike said so. No reality or other opinions allowed.
ALL HAIL MIDTOWN MIKE
You can’t disagree with him, because then he’ll say that his opinion isn’t “allowed.”
Often that word “allowed,” as if you are his daddy.
Summarizing Midtown Mike…
”You are wrong and I am right because I say so”…then name calling.
You see the first grade mentality and gleefully join in.
I wouldn’t say disfunction. They brought in a guy that didn’t pan out/fit the system, and there appears to be a mutual sentiment that it’s time to move on.
Function is getting rid of guys don’t fit. Time to function.
Sasha says he wants to leave.
Coaches say he isn’t going to be in the rotation.
Set the man free with a trade or a buy out. No drama. A simple announcement.
Yup. Pretty standard stuff.
Yep. It didn’t work out. It’s too bad, because he was a likable player.
Under the CBA, the closest they can come to canceling his contract is a buyout for $0, I believe.
If they can’t find a willing trade partner, that’s what they should do.
In any case, he was the tenth or eleventh player on the roster.
Not a big deal. I don’t read any more into it.
Sorry that Sasha feels that way but may be in Kings best interest to work out his exit . Very replaceable
at $6.6M he is 4.6% of the salary cap this season.
9th in minutes played (12.2 mpg) behind Keon Ellis.
37.5% 3FG. 44% FG 80% FT 5.4 ppg/2.3 rpg. 40 games played.
It seemed he played more towards the end of the season to me,
The timing of this is odd. I don’t know what his end of the season exit interview was like.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Sort of a Davis Bertans/Bjelica type season.
I wish him well in his future endeavors, but it’s difficult to imagine a return to Sacramento.
Send him to the Bulls. I guess it’s meant to be. Chicago has the highest Polish population there.
Barnes, Vez, Mitchell, Duarte for Lavine.
Then send Huerter to the Hornets for Grant Williams.
Make it happen, Monte McNair. Oh don’t forget to re-sign Monk.
He is Bulgarian. Raised in Greece.
I thought he might be able to make it but never did get traction.
The coaching and style of play could have had an effect but I think it was more on him. Could not free up for threes and never got a pass when he cut back door.
I hate to say this but I do think this is enough of a sample size. I would have liked more accurate evaluation of fit and talent. Options- you can’t retire, Kings can buy him out or he can buy out his contract, he can be released and stretched I guess, or he can be traded.
I would love the Kings to get bigger, longer at the 3/4 slots. Questionable if that can happen with #13. There are long 3/4 guys there but a risk and may take developmental time. But that pick may have more value (the temptation of Carter) as part of a trade. Washington wants a second lottery pick in their rebuilding mode. They own the #26. The draft is relatively flat from late lottery to around late 20’s. Carter probably BPA at 13 but is redundant. Most of DaSilva, Ware, Filipowski will be gone by 26. Why not Holmes?
Then use the 13 to Washington, add some salary (Sasha?) to match Kuzma and get him.
Go to Bulls- try to get them to unload LaVines salary- use some combination of Sasha, Lyles, Davion, Duarte, HB and Hueter to get that done. Bulls may be desperate to move off that high salary especially with Coby White emerging.
The Kings need a long 3/4- there are fantasies like Markenon, Grant or Ingrahm but the price is high.
Kings really do need to make a move. or three moves.
Settling for John Collins, Zach Collins, Kendrich Williams, even Jalen Smith and other third or fourth level guys will not do it.
The top teams do not want to give up long 3/4 guys, some of the emerging teams want to keep theirs and there are only a few teams in rebuild mode.
Miles Bridges, Wiggins, Keldon Johnson- all big problems.
Sign Monk at the I love Sac discount, use midlevel exception for a back up 3 and D- Derrick Jones, O’Neil or N. Marshall.
My bad, somehow I thought he was Polish.
It is extremely tough to get upgrades at the 2 and the 4, keeping Monk and keeping the 13th pick. Grant Williams is probably the only way to do it.
Williams is too short and does not get along with his teammates ( maybe just Luka)
All aside, I would prefer length.
Agreed. Length is needed.
One guy I’ve been kicking around in my head is Nikola Jovic. He really doesn’t get minutes on the Heat team and they are also in the first apron of the tax ($6M over) and are likely looking to shed salary. My guess is they want someone to eat Duncan Robinson’s deal.
I’d offer them up Huerter (who’s an acceptable swap for Robinson) for Duncan and Jovic.
Kings eat salary but get a 21 year old 6’10” stretch forward that could potentially play next to Sabonis. Heat lower their cap by over $5M and get very close to getting below the first apron.
He’s 6’8″ with a 6’10” wingspan. His standing reach is 8’8.5″. He’s got decent size. He is definitely a better defender than Kuzma.
You would have to include the 13th to trade for Kuz. But for Grant Williams, probably Huerter and a couple of second round picks.
Oh, Grant’s contract is pretty good too. It allows you to manage the salary cap much more effectively.
I personally don’t want LaVine. He was here before and wouldn’t want his contract.
“Here before” as in played for Sacramento???
In Jacks mind a lot of things have already happened. Lebron was traded to Kings for Jordan. Jordan traded for Jason Thompson.
It is a beautiful but chaotic thing.
Beautiful and chaotic like you insisting that the Kings didn’t play defense, as if repeating that line will magically make it true.
Now, it’s your job to say that your opinion isn’t “allowed.”
This team is a defensive power house that the NBA fears.
You are right.
Feel better?
Maybe I’m the outlier here, but I feel like the 2023-24 Kings defense landed somewhere between the two extremes of “no defense whatsoever” and “defensive power house”.
I’d personally feel better if some commenters didn’t feel the need to paint such extremes all the time.
Claiming this team is a good defensive team is extreme. They were 16. Right in the middle. The top of all the teams that didn’t go anywhere. Below all the teams that did something.
Winning is what matters. Being number 16 means nothing. Not a single team is worried about the Kings defense.
My opinion.
This is where we disagree. It was a significantly improved defense over 2022-23 and the trajectory shows some promise.
Of course, winning is what matters. The Kings were 10 games over .500 in an absolutely brutal Western Conference. That argues that their defense wasn’t “nothing” for people not trying to trigger responses in others.
It’s possible to acknowledge that the defense needs continued improvement while also acknowledging that it has come a long way. Many of us fans don’t live in the same world of extremes that you do.
From worst in defense for an entire decade to half way decent is an accomplishment. Walking to the mailbox is an equal accomplishment. Nothing to set themselves apart from average.
The Kings were ten over .500 in a brutal Western conference and did not make the playoffs. Playing a basic level of defense against the garbage teams they lost to would have guaranteed them a spot in the playoffs.
It is possible to want this team to win and thrive. It is also possible to simply enjoy having a team nearby that loses perpetually.
It’s funny how you make comments like “Nobody played defense for about 70 games. Most were capable but chose not to” and think that’s what it takes to show you want the team to win and thrive. At the same time, you deem others to be content with losing perpetually. It must be wonderful to be so perfect and odor free, to quote Del Griffith.
I assume that everyone who comes here to talk Kings desperately wants the same thing – to enjoy a winning, thriving team. You seem to assume that we’re all just schlubs who couldn’t care about watching winning basketball. Honestly, it’s your loss. I think most of the people who contribute here are good folks who want the best for this city and team.
I personally enjoy reading the positive and negative takes on the Kings. This community is generally pretty alright, if you ask me. I like sharing thoughts with like-minded individuals who all want to see a Kings championship.
Enjoy this community as well. The vast majority of commenters are great to converse with.
He did come in for an away game for his team, I do recall that.
I don’t reallt want LaVine or Kuzma either but the price for Grant, Markenon, is too high.
Z. Collins, J. Collins, Miles Bridges, Wiggins, Kendrich Williams and Wiggins = a big meh !
So Kuzma and LaVine are proven NBA players (gunners) who are gettable. A compromise since IMO something has to be done rather than “let’s run it back”
Interesting but the Kings most tantalizing asset is #13.
Grant Williams has problems with teammates and is way, way too short.
Huerter, Lyles, #13 and 2 seconds to the Spurs for Tre Jones and Zach Collins. Jones would be excellent backup to Fox. Hardly ever turns the ball over and last year had 6.2 assists per game. Collins known as poor man’s Sabonis would backup Domas really well. Both young and in Monty’s timeline
Lyles for Collins is probably a lateral move, with less shooting coming to the Kings.
Jones for Huerter would increase play making, but Jones is a non-factor when it come to spacing and shooting the 3.
So less spacing, maybe a 3rd distributor that wouldn’t play a ton (if Monk returns) and the Kings have to give up a 1st rounder and two 2nd rounders?
Too steep of a price, in my opinion.
yep
I wonder if some of his desire to get out has to do with McGee’s comments about the locker room not really caring about losing games. Considering he came from a relatively successful team, it’s possible he wasn’t a fan of having to sit on the bench and watch guys out there lacking desire to win.
Very disappointing to read these (somewhat) conflicting reports with the same likely conclusion – that we won’t see Vezenkov again in a Kings jersey.
I somewhat naively believe he could’ve made an impact when given some consistent playing time, but Mike Brown and his staff – who see Vezenkov every day – really never went there and showed time and time again that they didn’t view him as a core player. Which is a shame, because he could’ve provided the Kings with a unique (on this roster) combination of shooting and off-ball movement. He also showed a knack for rebounding (on both ends) and definitely improved on the defensive end, especially showing some skill in being in the right place off-ball and getting deflections.
Yes, it is a drag.
On the bright side, that’s more “playing time” for Barnes. (sarcasm)
Can’t say i blame the dude. He came here to play, not sit on his ass and have his minutes jerked around. He never would have signed here in the first place if he knew he wasn’t going to play.
Yeah, I wonder with what sort of assurances he was convinced to sign here.
He left a pretty good situation, so that must have been discussed beforehand.
Disappointing. I felt year two could’ve been a lot better for Vez. Great shooter, plus rebounder, and a natural feel for the game which mitigated his physical limitations.
Sometimes we see these guys as names and abstractions on paper, but they’re real people who deal with homesickness and frustration with work like any of us.
Idk if he’ll be gone by the start of camp, but if not I wonder if there’s a chance his feelings may change. I liked the guy and really would’ve liked to see at least one more season in Sacramento. Hopefully nothing has been said or done that can’t be repaired. Either way, all the best to Sasha.
If the reports of him simply wanting to return to Europe are true (there have been rumors of homesickness), then the Kings potentially have a good trade opportunity for any team looking to cut salary. I’d imagine his buyout is going to be very cheap since he is the one wanting out.
The first and second apron team could be very intrigued about trading for Sasha if $6.3M salary comes with say a $1.5M buyout. That’s potentially $+10M in savings to a tax team.
First apron teams: Lakers, Grizz, Heat, Bucks. Second apron teams: Boston, Minny, Denve, Suns.
If I were Monte, I’d definitely hit up the Bucks about Portis. Sasha for Portis works straight up, but would likely require the #13 in exchange. The Bucks are currently $8.8M over the first apron. A Sasha and the #13 for Portis and then a buyout gets them below the apron.
My offer: Sasha (buyout), #13, and #45 for Portis and the #23.
FWIW, I think the Bucks will move either Portis or Connaughton this summer to get below the apron.
The first report was that the Kings said that he does not have a role on the team anymore.
Then there’s the leak an hour later that he wants out and now is homesick.
A bit dodgy.
There were homesick rumors earlier in the season. Until wear hear it from the horse’s mouth (we won’t) its unclear if he wants out or the Kings simply want to move him.
I hear these homesick rumors about most foreign players here, not really buying that.
So why the conflicting stories? Do you think he wants to continue to play in the NBA?
Those can both be true and fall into the same narrative, right?
Sahsa could ask the team for an out, Kings say ok and then say he no longer has a role with the team, then the later is what is reported first by some random tweet. Doing some quick searches on the interwebs and the overwhelming story is that he asked for an out.
Now, whether or not he wants a trade or a return to Europe remains to be seen.
Look at the timing of the stories.
The first one was that the team said he no longer had a place here. The one that gets repeated over and over is the second one, that he wanted out. Which seems to me to be from one source.
Interesting that one story form one source gets sort of hushed while the other is apparently repeated over and over again (overwhelming, in your words).
I don’t believe you wrote what you intended. The third paragraph seems to contradict the second.
The first story, that the Kings told him he has no longer a place on the team, is barely repeated.
The second story, that Sasha asked out (without mentioning the first story that broke) is all over Twitter.
What is contradicting?
Just so we are clear, you are going with the one guy, who covers European bball, because he posted that the Kings had friend zoned Sasha 60 minutes before multiple folks, who cover the NBA, report that Sasha asked for an out.
Could it just be that all reports that followed the first tweet from Europe just added clarity to the situation?
Either way, it doesn’t matter. Sasha’s time as a Kings is over. The only questions now are is Sasha’s career as and NBA player over, or do the Kings trade him for greener pastures. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
At this point, the Kings are Sasha aren’t likely to team up on the story they tell the media.
Paragraph 2 says that the story much repeated is from a single source. Paragraph 3 says the story from one source is hushed while the other story is much repeated.
Think they move Lopez before Portis since he is younger and better .
I feel it’s a bit fruitless to apportion blame between Brown, McNair, Vivek in this situation. It didn’t work, and all parties share some blame.
I do think it’s worth noting that the 2023 offseason and 2024 trade deadline were now clear organizational failures, failures of omission. Does the organization recognize this? Are we going to learn and do things differently? There’s a real bias toward organizational conservatism in Sacramento that is worrying when the teams that stood pat (Lakers, Warriors, Nuggets, Kings) all fell backwards while the teams that took gambles (Wolves, Rockets, Thunder, Mavericks) all significantly improved.
The Kings need to be more aggressive in the trade market and in the draft.
I hear about this conservatism a lot, and there may be something to that but, at the same time, isn’t this the same front office that traded Haliburton for Domas?
If I recall correctly, the immediate consensus was that the Kings had lost that trade.
It might be one of the riskiest moves by any front office over the last few years.
That was also over 2 years ago and then the trade for Huerter and signing of Monk happened soon after. Monte has done virtually nothing since then.
Make it 15 years ago instead.
A risky move is a risky move.
A risk-averse GM making such a risky move makes me question the value of the label.
I understand the criticism that he didn’t make a big splash last offseason. I was kind of hoping they might make a play for someone like Dillon Brooks but also understood why they didn’t. In retrospect, it’s easy to think that they should have done more last offseason. But it’s also clear why they didn’t.
MM felt like he had his two stars in Fox/Ox, a solid upward trajectory in KM, a great option at sixth man in Monk, and expected continued contributions from Huerter and Barnes. Then there was the gamble on Vez that didn’t work out for various reasons.
As someone pointed out above, they weren’t too far off of expectations – only dropping two in the win column. Hitting 46 wins while Huerter’s confidence fell off the map and Barnes went largely invisible for long stretches was no small accomplishment.
And there were some genuine positives that should pay longer term dividends. To me, the vast defensive improvement by KM and solid defensive improvement by Fox along with the addition of Keon set the stage for this offseason.
The needs are glaringly obvious at this point. We need an improvement at PF and either to resign Monk or find another playmaker for the bench. Plus, role players. MM absolutely must address them. He’s given me the confidence to think he can work some magic. The operative word being “can”. I am hopeful this will be a good offseason.
I agree.
I wonder also question the idea that risk-aversion = not making enough moves.
The assumption among any fanbase seems to be that more moves must be made.
In light of that, I believe that largely standing pat was the riskier choice.
I am optimistic that there is a front office team in place- that GM McNair (and Wes Welker) works in conjunction with Coach Brown (Fernandez, Triano, Loucks, Christie, etc.) much how we saw Geoff Petrie and Rick Adelman march the Kings to their glory years, over two decades ago.
The new and different pieces seemed to gel on those old Kings teams and worked surprisingly well – 1999 (27-23) Tariq Abdul-Wahad, Jon Barry, Kevin Ollie, Corliss Williamson, Oliver Miller, Jerome James, Mad Maxand – JWill! Peja’s rookie season)
2000 (44-38) roster: Nick Anderson, Tony Delk, Tyrone Corbin, Darrick Martin
2001 (55-27) Doug Christie, Bobby Jackson, Jabari Smith, Hedo Turkoglu (R)
2002 (61-21) Mike Bibby
That is four seasons with these shifting rosters, not two. Reviewing those teams- some pieces worked better or worse than others, wouldn’t you agree?
Will these Mike Brown Kings compare to Rick Adelman’s squads?
One can hope. But I think you catch my drift.
The same needs were glaringly obvious at this time last year, and McNair didn’t succeed at improving the roster at all. Whether the stand-pat strategy was intentional or unintentional, the result was the GM of the team failed to improve the team.
I don’t disagree with the idea that last offseason was a bit of a bust. At the very least, it would have been nice to see MM take a swing for the fences. But the more important thing, to me, is that he has the Kings’ house in order.
The team really doesn’t have any unwieldy contracts and MM’s draft history is very good. Yes, I know that Huerter and Barnes aren’t worth what they’re paid. But with good health, the team will be in the playoff hunt for a few years to come. They’re not keeping up with the Pels, TWolves, Thunder, etc. But they’re not aging into oblivion like the Dubs, Lakers, and Clippers.
MM’s legacy in Sacramento is really going to be determined by what he does in the next two offseasons and trade deadlines. If both Huerter and Barnes are integral to the team’s success in the final years of their contracts, that’s a problem.
I’m just waiting to see what he does in the next month before I start worrying that MM is too risk averse.
Last Summer, he traded the #24 pick (which Dallas used on O-Max Prosper) and Richaun Holmes to re-sign Harrison Barnes for less than his previous contract for 3 years. At the end of last season, HB40 was the Kings 3rd best player and starting 3/4 (with Keegan). He also re-signed Trey Lyles, $16M/2 yrs.
He then secured Domantas Sabonis, who was 75th in NBA salary, who had an All-NBA season, and played 77 games despite a fractured thumb, and was scheduled to be an UFA, to a $210M/5 yr extension – a $40M discount (Ty Haliburton signed a $262M/5 yr contract extension).
He signed Chris Duarte and Sasha Vezenkov, drafted Colby Jones ($8.8M/4 yr contract).
I thought you knew all that. Yet…
So….he’s kept the same core for two years. That was kind of my point. Re-signing your onw players isn’t exaclty next level GMing.
Also, the #24 trade was not to re-sign Barnes, it was to open up cap space to extend Sabonis. The Kings had Barnes’ Bird Rights so no moves were needed to re-sign him.
Lastly, I do find it a bit ironic that he had to trade away the #24 and Holmes, whom he gave a 4 year $46M contract to just 6 months prior, in order to extend the guy he traded for to replace Holmes. I get that you should take the opportunities as they come, but man that is some bad management of assets.
Pay a guy to be your starter, but are then forced to attach a pick to him in order to pay the guy you traded for to replace said starter? No bueno.
yeah…virtually nothing. Don’t forget, he traded for cash considerations at BOTH deadlines.
I’ll add, it will absolutely suck if the same fate the befell Holmes happens with Barnes and/or Huerter. I don’t want to see Monte have to attach an asset for another team to take on their salaries, especially if he finds their replacements prior to moving them.
They may very well have to attache an asset in order to move Huerter. Aside from his first couple months in Sacramento, he’s been objectively terrible. That’s close to a season and a half of abysmal play (and counting).
Holmes is an interesting case in that before he signed for that contract, my feeling was that he was a fan favorite. Also, the fanbase in general seemed happy to get Holmes at the contract the Kings did.
But then that contract, like his play, aged like fish, and my impression was that the fanbase seemed happy to get rid of him when the Kings did.
In both cases, his signing and then his trade, I felt relief.
Anyway, I don’t blame McNair for the decline in his play.
I explained the sequence of events- Signing Barnes and Lyles as well as extending Domas were all part of the Holmes removal.
Holmes seemed a perfectly apt back up by my expert opinion and in my Head Coaching experience, he was a good fit.
I was shocked and dismayed that unanimous Coach of the Year, Mike Brown sought fit to disagree with me.
Harumphf!
Re-signing Barnes and Lyles to the +18 win Kings, 3rd in the West, Pacific Division champs (despite all Pac Div teams all reaching the playoffs) looks worst in the rearview mirror of a season past.
Your analysis is sharp, we just disagree on perspective.
The team seemed to be percolating along much like last season until the trade deadline and then all the frustrating losses (Detroit, Charlotte, the PHX collapse) were amplified as the season wound down and every (darn) time Sac had to rise to the occasion (Dallas, Dallas, Phoenix, New Orleans, New Orleans) they did not (except the pretty win over Golden State for Play-In Game #1).
To me- this last season is described more as disappointment where others find failure. And yes – it was a disappointment of a season, despite 46 wins. The roster needs alterations.
Jordi’s gone – does that matter?
Let me speculate that Holmes’ desire to play (hard and focussed) in Sacramento took a hit after his custody battle and some unkind coverage in the Sac media.
From the perspective of Monte McNair’s job security, the Domas/Halliburton trade wasn’t risky at all. I mean, Halliburton blew up nearly immediately, was 3rd team All NBA and took his team to the conference finals this year, and yet still few in Sacramento criticize the trade. (I remain supportive).
Interesting. I can’t name a riskier trade over the last two years by any NBA team.
How about the Suns leveraging their entire future for Durant and Beal?
That’s a good one. So Monte was risky, but not that risky.
There are a few more as well.
Kings put up a winning record one time and shut it down in fear of breaking it, Zero risk has been the Kings path.
I guess it is fruitless since we have absolutely no control over the situation.
I like Brown but I do feel he is to blame.
Sasha looked promising most of the time he was on the floor. What he needed was more time. Brown had a short leash around Sasha’s neck.
Meanwhile, Duarte and others were allowed to be mediocre (wasn’t Tascono-Anderson on the team for a while this year??) for game after game. Most notably, Barnes was invisible for most of the season, yet game after game he was out there.
I’m not saying Sasha could have taken Barnes’ spot. but he could have had a regular role in the season.
Nope. That’s on Brown.
Guys I don’t think we need to blow this up. We went 15-8 against 6 of 8 west playoff teams. All we need is a backup SF (replace Sasha) and backup center. These two can be acquired via 13 pick and MLE. I would run this thing back and hope we don’t get matched up against New Orleans again…
Running it back again? Sounds risky.
Luckily, no matter what happens this offseason, the Kings will likely be fun to watch again, for the third season in a row.
I’m going to be honest here. I think there are a lot variables, but I believe he saw the NBA was lightyears ahead of the Euroleague. Yes, MB put him in some awkward line ups, but he did give him some run with some of our better players, even with the starters.
This whole thing with Sasha seemed forced. I can’t say what’s in that man’s head, but from what played out leads me to believe he never really wanted to be here. He went from big dawg to a barely used rotational player. The injuries didn’t help either. Just because you can hoop, doesn’t mean your game translates to the NBA.
I wish him well though.
Quibble a little with “lightyears”: games are different, Euro league may be more physical in terms of what is allowed/what not. I would have been curious to see Vezenkov gte more playing time after the NBA refs started letting defenses play more from about mid-season on.
The Kings bet on internal development of Keegan, Davion, and Fox plus a meaningful contribution from Sasha to help the team improved. Keegan’s defense was a nice surprise, although his three point shot took a hit. Davion’s first half of the season stunk, only to turn it on in the last third. Fox’s defense improved, but his clutch shooting was nowhere to be found for some reason (he fell in love with the 3). Beyond that I had high hopes on Sasha being co-sixth man of the year level performance with Monk, making the second unit something that could push the team to higher levels. Sasha was a bust for various reasons (injuries, short arms, not shooting as well as advertised). Barnes regressed. Huerter had an off year. The team had worse injury luck. The west got better. All told, I’m surprised they only lost a couple of games in their record.
While everyone is clamoring for roster upgrades, it’s easier said than done. You have to have desirable assets to get desirable assets. Or at least cap space to sign elite talent. The Kings don’t have much to work with. No one is going to take Huerter and Barnes off of down years and return an elite player. Two nickels don’t equate to a dime in the NBA trade universe. They pretty much need a player to surprise and become elite to make it to the next level. Can Fox become SGA? Does Keegan have a superstar waiting within him to break out? Can McNair pull a rabbit out of the hat with the draft? Does Davion continue to play like he did in the final third of the season? Does Sabonis add an outside shot? We will see.
If Sasha refuses to report and plays in Europe, do we get the 6.6M back? How does that work?
He can’t play in Europe while he’s under contract with an NBA team.
I can’t blame him for leaving. Seems his heart was always in Europe. 28 I believe and not getting any more athletic barring a sabonis like offseason.
Could see him developing next year into a role player, wouldn’t be the first time Kings lost someone who flourished elsewhere.
Blaming coach Brown is not the move, Sasha got his minutes early in the season and failed to capitalize. Missed 3s and looked raw which is to be expected. He was injured and due to lack of production during time given early in season he moved down the bench. Normal NBA stuff
Prior to his arrival, analysis overwhelmingly said he lacks foot speed and lateral quickness for the NBA game, and that’s just what happened.
Seems like a good reason to go back to Europe.
Wasn’t the making $1-2 mil per year in Europe? Is he really going to give up $4-5 extra million for this upcoming year? I think the &6 mil he is set to make next year would increase his career earnings by 30% or more. It doesn’t appear he’s completely set for life like many NBA players.
I would think the extra $$$ would ease the pain of riding the pine. And it’s possible he improves and becomes a solid bench rotation player. Not likely, but possible.
and if it doesn’t work out in his second season, Kings won’t pick up his option and he can go back to Europe then.
I think it’s possible that he’s back next year.
He will go to Miami or Spurs and be a solid. Won’t surprise me. Brown is a good coach. He’s not in the class of Spoles or Pop.
Now being reported that Vezenkov will fulfil his contract and that Kings cannot get off his money unless they trade him, i.e. if the reports last week were accurate both Kings and Vezenkov are rowing them back: https://www.hoopsrumors.com/
Badge Legend