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Thank you, Vlade. It’s time to step down.

Vlade Divac will always be one of my favorite Sacramento Kings. But I'd appreciate him more if he'd admit the truth - that he is not the person who can save this Kings rebuild.
By | 94 Comments | Aug 5, 2020

Kimani Okearah

In the ideal world, this isn’t how Vlade Divac’s story in Sacramento would have gone.

When he returned to Sacramento in 2015, it was with a noble, fantastic goal – to finish what he and the Golden Age of Kings basketball couldn’t and finally bring a title to Sacramento. It was the ultimate Vlade move, betting it all on himself. And to be honest, I was ecstatic – you couldn’t have written a better script for this Kings fan, and I’m sure for many others. The leader and catalyst who made the crew headlined by Chris Webber, Peja Stojakovic, and Rick Adelman into the greatest show on court, coming back and directing the Kings turnaround after 9 years of disaster? I’m a sucker for basketball narratives, and I refuse to believe you could craft a better one than that for Sacramento. There wouldn’t have been anything sweeter than to see Vlade standing next to Adam Silver with the Larry O’Brien Trophy clutched in his oversized mits.

But five years into his tenure, it is clear that this isn’t the role Divac should play in a winning organization. There could certainly be a place for him somewhere – Director of Player Personnel or Global Ambassador –  somewhere where he can utilize his charm and persona that can still light up a room, even one as large as the Golden One Center. But ultimate decision maker? No – five years of rebuilding is long enough to see that this team needs a new direction. Five years is long enough for other teams in the West – Memphis, Phoenix, New Orleans, and Dallas – to hit rock bottom with Sacramento and rebound past them, both in the standings and the overall future promise of their talent. Five years has given us more than enough proof that Vlade is overmatched in this arena.

History shows us how narrow the road is for a small market franchise to become a real contender, and Vlade has missed on most of his biggest decisions and a whole lot of the smaller ones. Hiring Coach Luke Walton was perhaps Vlade’s last chance to nail a big decision, and – like Vlade – Walton is getting outmatched on a nightly basis. In the Orlando Bubble, the team has adopted Walton’s deer-in-the-headlights look on both ends of the court, and there’s not a player on the roster who is better utilized than they were under Dave Joerger. It’s all well and good to have a coach the players can get along with, but when a coaches’ message after two bad-to-terrible, low-effort losses is “relax and enjoy what we’re doing” – we don’t have to wonder why the Kings aren’t playing tough, physical, and prepared. As our intrepid buddy Will Griffith put it yesterday, With four months of preparation and a solid chance at a playoff berth, the Sacramento Kings came in woefully unprepared for the task at hand and were bushwhacked by teams that were injury plagued and unimpressive, but prepared.

Divac did nail one big decision – he selected De’Aaron Fox, an All-Star level talent who could help blitz this team back to success… but not by himself. Fox is not a transcendent player who can carry a bad roster and terrible coach to the playoffs. Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic, once promised to be excellent backcourt mates for Fox, but now both are mightily struggling under Walton in the Bubble and will combine for a huge chunk of the salary cap this offseason. Only three of the eight 1st round picks Vlade has made are still on the roster – and Harry Giles might be on his way out after the Kings declined his fourth year option, just one of a dozen small-but-inexplicable decisions made by the front office. And while we cannot know what Marvin Bagley would become without his foot troubles – not Vlade’s fault, of course – there are plenty of stars emerging from that fated 2018 draft.

Indeed, the chances for this rebuild’s success probably ended on June 21, 2018, when Divac and company selected anyone over Luka Doncic. There will be endless, meaningless arguments about how good the MVP candidate would be in Sacramento, and it’s true that without an established, top-tier coach like Rick Carlisle, Luka probably wouldn’t have hit this peak so quickly. Fans can argue Doncic’s fit with Fox until the cowbells stop ringing from the Golden One rafters…. which, given the growing apathy for this franchise, might be sooner than Vivek Ranadive wants to admit. But there’s no logical argument that the Kings wouldn’t be better, wouldn’t be making more money, and wouldn’t be closer to Divac’s goal of a championship. No matter who made the hardest push for not-Luka, Divac had the final say – and there will never be a reasonable answer for an NBA General Manager to pass on a prospect with Luka’s gamebreaking basketball instincts and sheer skill.

That, itself, is the most heartbreaking part of all of this; after lady luck smiled on the Kings and gave them a clear shot at greatness, they ran against the grain and all basketball logic. In an alternate universe, we may all be endlessly praising Vlade just because he made the easiest layup of his life. But that isn’t this universe – and while this is understandably the worst possible time for the Kings to be paying to replace a General Manager and yet another Head Coach, if the Kings want any shot at this rebuild to be salvaged, they need to find new leaders.

Vlade is a generous man who didn’t need to do anything more to win over the City of Sacramento. We already loved him – and even after his run as General Manager, and the half-decade he has set the franchise back, he will always remain one of my favorite Kings. But I think I speak for many fans when I say we’d appreciate him more if he’d admit the truth – that he is not the person who can take the Kings to the promised championship. Thank you for all the memories, Vlade – it’s time to step down.

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SierraSpartan
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August 5, 2020 1:46 pm

…except that the decision to hire his replacement would come down to Matina and Vivek – and if that don’t keep the average Kangz fan up at night, I don’t know what will.

I’m halfway afraid they’d try to foist KAAAAAAAHN on us.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 1:53 pm
Reply to  SierraSpartan

I’ve been noticing Matina’s name popping up a lot lately.

Can we get the scoop on her? Some old-school reporting where you have to go in some back alleys and dig up the dirt? Rummage through her office garbage bin for receipts? An EXPOSE’ is what I’m trying to say!

If nothing else, at least a report on what she actually does? I know she’s listed on the team site as the COO of the Sacramento Kings. But how involved is she with regards to basketball team building decisions?

Last edited 3 years ago by Kosta
Klam
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August 5, 2020 2:08 pm
Reply to  Kosta

I remember there were multiple sources that said Matina was the driver behind Vlade’s hiring. I’m not sure what other things she was behind, but she’s got a lot of power in the organization.

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 2:53 pm
Reply to  Kosta

The “knows where the bodies are buried” line about Matina has always lead me to believe if people digged deep enough they’d uncover some shady stuff associated with the deal to keep the Kings in Sacramento. It all seems to revolve around real estate. Matina’s family is big into downtown Sac real estate. The City of Sacramento valued a bunch of downtown real estate they gifted to the Kings at $0 to avoid increasing the value of the public financing. Kunal Merchant went from KJ’s chief of staff to vice president of strategic initiatives for the Kings to basically a lobbyist of sorts on behalf of sacramento real estate developers attempting to get public financing for Sacramento downtown “opportunity zones”.

Point being, if her knowledge of key events insulates her from scrutiny, then one has to assume that those events would embarrass ownership and the city. There’s no other logical explanation. Why would bodies that were buried prior to Vivek’s tenure protect her in any way? If I had to guess, she was essentially Vivek and the City’s person on the inside working on their behalf while being paid by the Maloofs. Maybe it wasn’t illegal, but it’s not something you’d want to be known publicly. It would look like the deal was created to cater to special interests instead of something that was good for Sac’s general population.

Gregoryl
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August 5, 2020 2:58 pm
Reply to  RORDOG

That would be a hell of a story if even half-true.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 3:27 pm
Reply to  RORDOG

This is a great start!

Even if we don’t get all the questions answered, I think it’s still worth laying out all the questions there for people to see. + What business relationships/ties does she have that should be under scrutiny, why she has been around through so many losing seasons, etc….

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 5:04 pm
Reply to  Kosta

I mean it’s a lot of inference on my part, but I just can’t think of any legit reason people would describe her power/role the way they do. I always go back to the article The Madness of Kings because I think it’s the best article about the inner working of the organization. This is the full buried body quote:

Sources close to the Kings’ nerve center say chief operating officer Matina Kolokotronis was the catalyst behind Divac’s hire. “She’s the only person in the organization that Vivek really trusts,” says a longtime league executive. “She’s the connective tissue of the organization. Her institutional knowledge is second to none, and she’s politically wired in Sacramento. She knows where every body is buried.” Now in her 20th season with the Kings, Kolokotronis is the team’s one-woman ode to continuity. She has done it all, including negotiating player contracts, housing international players in her guest house, running the team’s foundation and working the back channels of Sacramento’s civic power structure. Her critics see her as a consigliere who is far too involved in basketball matters.

That just sounds like it could’ve been written about the COO of a mob-connected cement factory that wins all the bids for city construction projects.

I’m obviously not saying she’s connected to the mob. It’s just not how I’d think ESPN would describe the typical NBA COO.

Last edited 3 years ago by RORDOG
Kingsguru21
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August 5, 2020 4:19 pm
Reply to  RORDOG

There is alot of goodies to unpack here.

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 9:06 pm
Reply to  RORDOG

This article kinda helps explain my point:
https://insidesacramento.com/sotiris-kolokotronis/

Its a great comeback story for a developer that went bankrupt during the last recession. The comeback would not have been possible if Matina’s former bosses were granted their wish to relocate. Also this article gets at my point that the relationship between Vivek and the city was a bit too cozy:
https://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/sacramento-arena-lawsuit-unearths-new/content?oid=17159293

this article gets into the whole public private partnership thing. It gets at my point that developers get the public to finance big projects, so the surrounding real estate becomes develop-able:

Sacramento Shakedown

It’s not really much different than what goes on everywhere. It’s just interesting that the president of a company would stand to benefit from that company failing to achieve their clearly stated goal. Then that president is retained by the new owner and deemed untouchable because she knows where every body is buried. Then to top it all off, her husband’s company simultaneously makes this huge comeback that would not have happened if her former bosses achieved their goals.

KevinSalvadori
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August 5, 2020 7:23 pm
Reply to  Kosta

She is very involved. I can’t speculate on the stuff below about real estate, but she directly has Vivek’s ear and has helped to entertain some of his crazier indulgences, like giving his son a bigger role in the organization, hiring Vlade, and some of the mid and lower level personnel changes that were very unpopular. All roads, or many vital roads, run through her. She doesn’t interfere with basketball directly, at least not that I’ve heard, but her seniority and extremely tight bond with Vlade and Vivek has formed an echo chamber for bad ideas and groupthink. She does play a huge role in personnel, business, and many PR decisions, and from what I hear does not seek many inputs before making big calls. That has polarized internal opinion and led people to fear her, fron what I’ve heard/read.

I find it telling that other executives, beloved former staff members, and several agents all know her, and with a wary eye. Whether she is a big part or a minor part in our dysfunction is an open question, but she definitely plays some part, and it has been that way for a pretty long time.

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 9:23 pm
Reply to  KevinSalvadori

Good stuff.

Kingsguru21
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August 6, 2020 7:12 am
Reply to  KevinSalvadori

This is great stuff Kevin. And it is telling agents are wary of her.

RobHessing
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August 5, 2020 4:22 pm
Reply to  SierraSpartan

ThumbsUp’d.

The only things that save this organization would be to hire a GM that is so well-regarded and known that he/she would be above the influence of the current shitocrasy. Either that or for Ranadive to sell. That’s it.

I guess that a guy like Hinkie might come here, even though he got kneecapped in Philly. I mean, offer a guy enough money and he won’t say no. But it won’t work if Ranadive is still in a position of influence.

And Presti, Uriji, guys of that caliber? They ain’t comin’ here. Not to work for these ass clowns.

There needs to be a big change above Vlade. Then Vlade needs to go. Then Walton needs to go.

Kingsguru21
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August 6, 2020 7:13 am
Reply to  RobHessing

Ding ding ding.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 1:47 pm

We need a Marie Kondo intervention….
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Last edited 3 years ago by Kosta
Klam
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August 5, 2020 1:50 pm
Reply to  Kosta

comment image

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 1:56 pm
Reply to  Klam

The Kings Front Office are Public Enema #1.

SierraSpartan
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August 5, 2020 3:19 pm
Reply to  Kosta

Fear of a Kangz Planet

Amonk81
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August 5, 2020 4:03 pm
Reply to  Kosta

This is The Washington Football Team exactly. The entire organization (business side and all) is royally fucked up…thanks to Vivek(Snyder). More than we know.

Again, it disgusts me that ego has drive the Kings into the dirt, even lower than before.

Vlade is horrific and needs to go, as does Luke but not sure that’s enough. It’s a start, as WFT got rid of terrible GM and on field looking better. But still a mess thanks to the owner.

ENOUGH of this shit Vivek et al. You guys are a joke. Please leave….please.

1951
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August 5, 2020 1:53 pm

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Last edited 3 years ago by 1951
Kosta
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August 5, 2020 3:29 pm
Reply to  1951

Send Luke to DAGOBAH!
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Kosta
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August 5, 2020 2:06 pm

Kick them all out!
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“Sacramento, this is YOUR team!”comment image

(I know Doug’s worn the cursed yellow before as well, but he’s not involved in decision-making.)

Last edited 3 years ago by Kosta
Klam
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August 5, 2020 2:10 pm
Reply to  Kosta

At least one guy got kicked out…

comment image?ve=1&tl=1

L-Train3.1
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August 5, 2020 2:14 pm
Reply to  Kosta

All that gold is disgusting

AirmaxPG
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August 5, 2020 2:36 pm
Reply to  Kosta

This is the only acceptable L*ker I want in our FO:

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Kosta
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August 5, 2020 2:40 pm
Reply to  AirmaxPG

That’ll work!

ZillersCat
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August 6, 2020 9:38 am
Reply to  AirmaxPG

Doesn’t that raise the team age? We are a young team top to bottom.

Last edited 3 years ago by ZillersCat
Adamsite
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Nostradumbass 14
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August 5, 2020 2:11 pm

Well said, Bryant. I said a few days ago here that I would regain a lot of respect if Vlade stepped down. He said he would if he did not succeed, so I believe and hope he is a man of his word.

Klam
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August 5, 2020 2:24 pm
Reply to  Adamsite

He’s already got nearly a year and half of a leash on top of the two years after he said that statement…how long will it prolong.

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 9:33 pm
Reply to  Adamsite

Obviously, it would be nice if Vlade kinda fell on his sword. Ultimately, I think that kinda obfuscates who’s to blame. Vivek re-signed Vlade last year after it was 1000% evident Vlade made a monumental blunder passing on Doncic. Vivek should own that mistake. Otherwise, he kinda skates by without truly learning any lessons. I don’t really have much confidence an owner will change his stripes if he needs to rely on the goodwill of his subordinates to unscrew a situation for him.

L-Train3.1
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August 5, 2020 2:12 pm

Give us Hinke! … Would Hinke work for Vivek? I would say probably not.

RobHessing
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August 5, 2020 4:35 pm
Reply to  L-Train3.1

If you pay him enough, sure. But he won’t be effective as long as Vivek remains Vivek.

Marty
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August 5, 2020 2:15 pm

comment image

jay14bay
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August 5, 2020 3:01 pm
Reply to  Marty

lol, you are good. so good

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 4:30 pm
Reply to  Marty

I love these, Marty!

AirmaxPG
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August 5, 2020 2:33 pm

From another thread, this is Vivek crawling back to Geoff Petrie:

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BigDrewbot
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August 5, 2020 4:05 pm
Reply to  AirmaxPG

this is what kills me – we had such a great head in Petrie. I’m convinced that the bad years near the end were done specifically at the direction of the Maloofs when they were trying to drive down attendance so they could move the team and probably broke Geoff’s heart….

Last edited 3 years ago by BigDrewbot
Dirkula
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August 5, 2020 3:07 pm

Only three of the eight 1st round picks Vlade has made are still on the roster

Ooph 🤦🏻€™‚️

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 3:30 pm
Reply to  Dirkula

The others graduated!

SPTSJUNKIE
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August 5, 2020 4:16 pm
Reply to  Dirkula

It’s worse than that though – as that leaves some hope they are thriving elsewhere – this is Vlade’s draft record (first round):

2015:
#6: WCS – On fringes of league – averaged 12mpg with Mavs

2016
#13: Papa G – Out of the NBA
#22: Richardson – Out of the NBA
#28: Skal – Played 17mpg for a injury ravaged team, before getting hurt himself

2017
#5: Fox – Bright young star
#15: JJ – Played 16mpg, but down to 8mpg in bubble
#20: Giles – Played 15mpg mostly due to other injuries

2018
#2: Bagley – Should be a good player, but notable for who we passed up

2019:
None

So 8 total first round picks an equal number of players out of the NBA as there are starting. And several others on the fringes of the NBA and potentially out soon.

It’s hard to have much success as a lottery team when you get picks 6, 8, 3, 2, and 14 and turn them into as little as we have. Even more depressing when you pass on several star players in the process of whiffing on your draft picks.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 4:32 pm
Reply to  SPTSJUNKIE

Yeah, that’s certainly NOT a record of a GM that has earned an extension.

(Thanks for doing all of that work and assembling that, SPTSJUNKIE)

Last edited 3 years ago by Kosta
Dirkula
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August 5, 2020 4:35 pm
Reply to  SPTSJUNKIE

You’re right, that does make it feel worse. Not just bad picks but outright whiffs!
It truly boggles the mind that a man who has made BILLIONS can tolerate such consistently poor choices by his GM, UNLESS…
(Were f’d until Vivek goes away)

Kingsguru21
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August 6, 2020 7:15 am
Reply to  Dirkula

That’s nothing Kosta. You should see his spreadsheets of game theory sometime.

Amonk81
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August 5, 2020 5:15 pm
Reply to  SPTSJUNKIE

Agree except I’m not sure why people thing Bags will be good. He can’t shoot, play D or pass. In other words, his game is not made for the modern NBA. Never was.

A big part of why the pass on Luka was horrific….they took the one player who has nothing to offer the modern NBA. He’s, at best, a stat stuffer. He will never be more than that.

Shit, I knew that just watching him at college and summer league. They could have selected almost anyone else and at least had a productive player.

So, Vlade fucked that up too.

Kangz_Landing
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August 5, 2020 3:28 pm

Relax guys, we’re still in the running for the 9th seed

In the lottery. Go Wizards! Sarcasm aside, every time I see Luka in a Mavs jersey feature on ESPN, I hold back vomit.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 4:33 pm
Reply to  Kangz_Landing

Did you just refer to our coach as Puke Walton?

Kangz_Landing
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August 5, 2020 5:15 pm
Reply to  Kosta

No, but that’s a good one 😂

ImJoeKing
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August 5, 2020 9:39 pm
Reply to  Kangz_Landing

Speaking of the Wizards.. Just looked at the standings in the East and they have been overtaken by the Hornets who are not even playing basketball.

If the Wiz keep losing they could slide under the Bulls in the standings and improve their draft position while non-bubble teams sit idle.

The Kings meanwhile have fallen to 13th in the West which is the worst (best) we can do.

Wonderchild
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August 6, 2020 8:49 am
Reply to  ImJoeKing

It doesn’t work like that for the Wizards. They can’t drop below the non-bubble teams in the lottery.

realjc
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August 5, 2020 3:41 pm

28 losing seasons since the Kings relocated from Kansas City to Sacramento. Kings fans just can’t leave their abusive partner.

SacSovereigns
August 6, 2020 10:15 am
Reply to  realjc

That shows you how good Rick Adelman was. 8 years coaching this joke of franchise, 8 years in the playoffs. I believe all winning seasons!

Omr_14
August 5, 2020 3:48 pm

Is there anyway we as fans can actually get this message through to the boneheads in charge of this team?

I’m sick and tired of Vlade’s incompetence.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 4:34 pm
Reply to  Omr_14

We tried the billboard. I think social media campaign is the next way to go.

StockholmKing29
August 6, 2020 9:51 am
Reply to  Omr_14

Probably a boycott would get their attention. Loss of season ticket revenue and fed up fans booing in the stands. I honestly get so frustrated that we as kings fans continue to cheer and celebrate this team when they are so clearly being driven straight into the ground. I’ll always remember warriors fans literally booing their top brass off the court and the insane turnaround that that franchise experienced in the following years.

Dr.209
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August 5, 2020 3:49 pm

Great, succinct article that was not mean or patronizing. I too love Vlade, but the franchise has stumbled for the reasons you mentioned above. Normally I like to give coaches at least 2 years, but this year was such a let down strategically that I think Vlade-Walton need to go. Those will be expensive contacts to tear up but Vivek knew that when he agreed to such terms last summer.

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August 5, 2020 3:51 pm

Agree that I would also regain a lot of respect for Vlade if he just steps down. I think even if he steps aside and hires his own replacement, I wouldn’t trust him to make the right decision.

Small market teams need to find top tier talent in the draft, and Vlade missed every time.

Cjkippy
August 5, 2020 4:16 pm

Peja comes into my work several times a week and he was in there after the loss to the Mavericks and I said to him that was a tuff loss and he looked at me and shook his head and didn’t say much but his look was different then any other time the Kings lost, he truly looked embarrassed….. I want the Kings to be good so bad but with the roster we have now it just will not happen. Buddy isn’t as good has we thought he would be and Bogi is way too inconsistent to be relyed apon. The only way for us to become a good team is if Bagley truly is a generational talent but I don’t think we will ever find out.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 4:36 pm
Reply to  Cjkippy

…you don’t happen to work at strip club, do you?

(note:how do we do the sarcasm font here at TKH?)

BestHyperboleEver
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August 5, 2020 4:21 pm

Don’t look now, but another of Bagley’s draft class mates is having their star turn (Porter Jr. put up his second straight 30pt double/double today). While Trent Jr. is breaking out and people are realizing that Mikal Bridges is already quite good.

Amonk81
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August 5, 2020 5:17 pm

Exactly….and what I was sayin above. The pass on Luka was horrific but the selection of Bags was almost as bad. Fucking morons and egos.

MB3sthumbpad
August 5, 2020 4:25 pm

Why did it take this long for this article to be written? Let’s all be honest here, this could have been posted years ago. His decisions have been soul crushing. Public opinion should have been lashing out at Vivek and Vlade the moment we all heard that he was even considering Marvin Walking Boot III at the #2 pick.

BestHyperboleEver
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August 5, 2020 4:30 pm
Reply to  MB3sthumbpad

I mean, he never should have been considered for the job considering his complete lack of FO experience or even a meaningful amount of experience managing ANY aspect of a GM’s job.

Wonderchild
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August 5, 2020 4:40 pm

Ya I remember when he came in. I was thinking, “Cool he’s going to be President of BBall Ops. That’s a good role for him.”

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 9:44 pm
Reply to  Wonderchild

He wasn’t even that. If you go back and read the role he was hired to perform it was so ambiguous. He was basically the brand ambassador. Then all of a sudden he became Pete’s boss. Then when Pete quit, Vlade was like the Dick Cheney of the search process, and decided to take the job for himself.

Wonderchild
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August 6, 2020 8:51 am
Reply to  RORDOG

That’s correct. I just assumed he would settle into the President role. I never imagined he would actually try to be GM.

PlayoffModeT
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August 5, 2020 4:32 pm

Great article, Bryant. It honestly should be shared on every BR comment section so it can spread like wildfire.

I love Vlade’s personality and what he is to Sacramento prior to becoming the GM but looking at his picks, I really dont want to give him any credit for Fox either.

That Philly/Kings trade was so disastrous, giving Philly #3 (and they used our 2018 pick to acquire the #1) for us to have #5.

We all remember Fox in 2017, he practically forced his way into Sacramento.. but its true, we still had to choose him.

The other two 1st rounders remaining are Harry Giles and Marvin Bagley, correct? They barely count..

I hope he does decide to step down and this summer. Honestly, its best for both sides.

ScottyPop
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August 5, 2020 5:28 pm

Great article .

On a side note, Vox just released their announcement about the comment changes. The only SBN blog that I still frequent is having a collective freak out. Similar to our freakout after the AB5 bullshit.

Talk about ruining a good thing. What a bunch of buffoons.

Major props to you guys for keeping this thing alive. Thanks again.

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 8:38 pm
Reply to  ScottyPop

VOXSUX.gif

Klam
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August 5, 2020 10:28 pm
Reply to  ScottyPop

Letting the old crew go was truly a blessing in disguise for our community.

Kingsguru21
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August 6, 2020 7:16 am
Reply to  ScottyPop

I hope AN is ready…… but I doubt it.

Chent
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August 5, 2020 5:40 pm

Kings fans are simple, give us a chance to compete thats all. Just give me Hinkie as GM. Trade Buddy for Horford and draft pick or Thybulle, S&T Bogi to the Bucks for DJ Wilson+salary. a starting lineup of Fox, Jeffries, Justin James, Bagley, Horford, bench of our 12th pick Patrick Williams, Philly pick Balmaro/Maledon, DJ Wilson off the bench, and a tanking season next year and I’m happy.

Next year, without fans most likely, has a great draft and it makes too much sense to tank for at least one more year.

SelecaoKOJ
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August 5, 2020 5:59 pm
Reply to  Chent

I would trade almost everyone(Make that anyone) for expiring contracts, draft picks and young talent. But, that makes too much sense. Vlade and Bong Hitting Expert Tape Watcher has to go. A complete and total reboot is needed. If this owner really cares about this organization and the hardcore fans, he will pull the trigger. I would be glad to get a Top 5 pick the next 2 years. The next 2 drafts are loaded. It’s time to build a foundation for a successful future. No more arranging deck chairs.

RobHessing
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August 5, 2020 6:27 pm

Anyone want to bet that any of the current roster ever sees the playoffs as a Sacramento King?

Bbmuteman
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August 5, 2020 8:06 pm
Reply to  RobHessing

I hope you’re giving four or five to one odds with that kind of bet.

Carl
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August 5, 2020 9:11 pm
Reply to  Bbmuteman

I wouldn’t even take five to one on that bet. I think Fox is the only player with a remote chance to make the playoffs as a King.

SharkKing
August 5, 2020 7:02 pm

2 years too late. Every GM makes mistakes, but Bagley over Luka may have ruined a generation of Kings fans. Especially when V&V may have been the only professionals that would have made that pick.

My vote would he hire Hinkie. Burn the roster down. Since there are no fans next year, who cares if we go 0-82. Our goal will be to be competitive when fans return and fight for the playoffs by the 2nd year with fans.

My dream is Qualcomm is thriving enough that the Jacob’s family buys out Vivek. Maybe they appoint Mastrov as managing owner if they dont want to run the team. Long shot, but the best case scenario.

Otis
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August 5, 2020 8:57 pm
Reply to  SharkKing

Shark, couldn’t agree with you more. If you’re going to say “fuck the consensus” and go out of the box to pick Bagley over Doncic and it doesn’t work? You gotta go. Especially so because you see having more creators on offense as a bad thing.

And not just from the on-court standpoint of adding a guy who is already arguably a top-10 NBA player in his second season (and at a very young age). But I’d say it’s Vivek’s obligation to terminate Vlade for the lost revenue – merchandise and playoff.

Look, don’t fire the guy if you’re too chickenshit – “promote” him and essentially give day-to-day decision making power to someone else.

Last edited 3 years ago by Otis
SPTSJUNKIE
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August 6, 2020 7:12 am
Reply to  Otis

Bingo – I don’t mind that a FO takes a bold gamble, but they need to own it.

And the only potential insulation from being that wrong going against the grain is overall results – as in “we missed on Doncic, but similar risks we have taken have paid off and we have won 50 games and are looking forward to our 2nd round playoff matchup.”

This FO missed on their big gamble where they tried and failed to outsmart the other 29 GMs. And we are on pace for 34-35 wins after 5 seasons and 5 lottery picks.

That is a failed FO and one that needs to be replaced.

Wonderchild
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August 6, 2020 8:59 am
Reply to  SPTSJUNKIE

Even look at the other 3 teams that passed on Doncic (I include Memphis here because they conceivably could have offered a similar deal to Atlanta for the 3rd pick). They look to be further in their rebuild, despite passing on a generational talent.

KevinSalvadori
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August 5, 2020 7:13 pm

Well said, Bryant. Fantastic article. It hit me on the way in to work today why I’m so frustrated now, at this moment.

When Vlade took the team over we were a joke. We had a coach whose personality and system seemed in direct conflict with our playing staff. We had a dominant star player coming into his own and a couple interesting but unproven accessory pieces. Our lack of depth and talent were a big issue. Only 1, maybe 2 players in our starting 5 would have competed for the same role on a decent team. The team had flirted with success under a different coach who was prematurely fired and comically replaced.

Fast forward to now. The team is still a joke. We have a different coach whose personality and style doesn’t fit, a potential star player with no help, no depth, questionable talent, and a weak starting 5. Literally nothing has changed. We have different faces, slightly different payroll figures, but almost nothing else has changed.

I thank Vlade for taking this job, and not being Pete D. He loves this city and fanbase, and we love him. But we’re treading water and heading nowhere. It’s time to move on.

Otis
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August 5, 2020 8:59 pm
Reply to  KevinSalvadori

Man, there’s a Sophie’s Choice – Vlade or Pete D?

Kosta
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August 5, 2020 10:05 pm
Reply to  Otis

Ranadiva’s Choice

G-naps
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August 5, 2020 9:06 pm

Looks like the reply to is showing names again.

RORDOG
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August 5, 2020 10:13 pm

I just want to point out it takes some major testicular fortitude for a brand new, independent site, devoted to covering a professional team, to publish an article calling for said team’s beloved GM to step down. If you haven’t already become a patron, then now’s the time to do so.

Ultimately, this specific article may not change anything, but this town needs more megaphones to amplify fan frustration. That’s the only way to get them to listen to the results-oriented segment of the fan base. œŠ

Klam
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August 5, 2020 10:34 pm
Reply to  RORDOG

The Kings Herald

Independent Sacramento Kings Coverage. By Fans, For Fans.

ManuteBolLegacy
August 6, 2020 5:53 am

And here I was, quite optimistic in betting a non nominal amount of money on the Kings winning at least 4 games in the bubble lol

Last edited 3 years ago by ManuteBolLegacy
dhackett
Dave Hackett
August 6, 2020 6:09 am

The utter sense of despair, anger and loathing when I hear the name Vlade Divac is just getting worse and worse every day that he remains in the Kings FO. He really needs to get the f*** out and stop trying to prove himself as something he’s not

4on5
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August 6, 2020 7:00 am

Kangz basketball. 4 bad owners. 2 unqualified hall of fame centers named GM and totally screw things up. Now that the Clippers have a real owner, the Kings are 1980-1990 Clippers for the foreseeable future. Vlade is part of that. But, he’s only part of that.

1C23B2F1-E249-4FBD-BBA6-A34E49425471.jpeg
andy_sims
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August 6, 2020 8:39 am

Anyone that was in the front office under the Maloofs needs to be gone. Anyone hired by Matina Kolokotronis needs to be gone. They have accomplished exactly nothing over the past two decades. The COO’s resume has no highlights other than “hung on to same job for twenty years. Accomplishments: Third place one time right after 9/11.”

Her influence, which includes the hiring of Divac, apparently, has brought no success to the organization. None. Her sentimentality about that one time we were good has led to innumerable bad decisions.

You and your family are exceedingly rich, madam. You should travel, and maybe take a new job at a charity, say the Red Cross, which you can then bring down from the inside.

fire_voisin
August 6, 2020 9:12 am

Nice article but I don’t think asking nicely is going to make this happen. More likely, Vivek will use the same playbook he tried to use to get George Karl to quit- by firing his right hand man- which means Peja is a goner.

andy_sims
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August 6, 2020 10:35 am
Reply to  fire_voisin

In Peja’s mind, he’s already gone.

eddie41
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August 6, 2020 2:22 pm

I would give it another year. Luke Walton was not successful but it was his first year, there were many injuries, and they won 13 of last 20 before quarantine. the Fox, Bogdan backcourt is looking good. They have some other nice pieces.

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