The Athletic’s 2026 Anonymous NBA Player Poll included this question: What’s the first team on your no-trade list? The Sacramento Kings came in third with 10.8% of the vote, behind the Washington Wizards (11.7%) and the Memphis Grizzlies running away with the top spot at 35.8%.
The reasoning behind Memphis scoring so poorly was:
“I’ll play anywhere, honestly,” one player explained. “But I would have to say Memphis is a place I don’t want to live. So that would be the reason why I wouldn’t want to play there.”
Said another player: “It has nothing to do with the team. It’s the location of the team.”
The reasoning behind the Wizards: “The team has not won 50 games in a season or reached the Eastern Conference finals since 1978-79. Its 17-65 record as it tanked this season likely perpetuated the losing-franchise narrative.”
The article didn’t go into detail as to the reasoning behind the Kings landing in the third spot, but who are we kidding? No one is the least bit surprised by this right? You don’t need me to drone on about this franchise, its decisions, its owner, its track record, its everything. We do that all year-long here at Kings Herald Dot Com.
Ask any Kings fan and they won’t have a problem quickly providing their own reasoning.
As a matter of fact, how about you all provide your reasons in the comments. Let’s hear it.
-Memphis crime rate is one of the highest. The city is a dumpster fire sitting in a cesspool of filth.
-DC is a perpetual losing franchise. Fairly high taxes as well. They have some decent talent now, but probably years away from being a relevant team.
-Sacramento is/was (?) a nice place to live, but the basketball franchise has been so poorly ran for decades. CA taxes are also really high, especially for millionaires.
True, but players don’t bat an eye at CA taxes when it’s SF or LA.
Later in that article there is a great deal discussed about how players are cared for and various amenities, including personal chefs, facilities, veteran staff that knows how to cater to the talent, etc. My guess is that the Kings are on the lower tier of providing these extras as well.
Yeah, the tax thing gets incredibly over blown, especially when you consider that vast majority of NBA players set up various 501c3 tax shelters, like personal foundations, to help offset their tax burden. The stars are paying more to their agents and personal support staff then they are to taxes.
I agree it has more to do with the behind the scenes of a franchise and the things we don’t see or hear about that determines the likability of a team. I recall the scene in Money Ball where the players had to pay the vending machine in the club house (it was a real thing). Those kind of little slights could really affect the perception of a franchise.
All shrewd players have tax avoidance strategies, but even after all that, CA will still take the most of any state.
Agree. This is not a Tax thing. Players are happy to play in all the other California teams happy to play with the Knicks. That’s just bullshit propaganda.
it’s all about the owner and the way he’s set this team up for failure. He’s cheap and he’s an asshole. That’s a bad combination.
The Kings have their own Pizza Guy. Why are they complaining?
They should lose their breakfast.
Reason #1 – Vivek
I’m out of reasons.
“10.8% won’t come here, but 41.7% of all current NBA players have me rated no worse than 4th.
Hater.”
Hey, and there’s a chance you could drop from 4th to 7th! They do that in other aspects of percentages, so why not apply it to favorability!
Hopefully at some point before I die the first half of this article title will be true.
Not surprised the front office and fans treat their stars like crap after several seasons and talk bad about them like 1 player was supposed to take the team to the finals
Fans? What are you talking about? Sacramento fans are notoriously easy with the players.
This is 100% about the owner and how he’s set everything up. Cheaply and sent it around his ego.
I’m just surprised they’re not number one. Good job, Vivek you’re climbing the boards.
And yet somehow the Knicks and Sixers overcame the most negative fans in the world. I wonder what the difference is?
I just want to thank you in advance for taking the family out to the airport to welcome the next overpaid, cast-off veteran to Sacramento. Don’t forget the foam fingers.
Every player once they end up in Sac:
Think we should all move to Saint Tony! This is going to be a great series.
Awright! We are top 3 in something! Great Success!
Waiting for the franchise to drop “Kings land third…”.
I guess I’ll have to watch the Spurs-OKC game on replay. Just saw the final score and stats. Wemban-freakin’-yama, man.
I feel like this is actually a major victory for Vivek. To only be considered the 3rd worst place in the NBA, after all the idiotic moves over more than a decade, all of the backstabbing of former players, coaches and executives, and in how bad a spot the Kings are in with their roster and contracts – 3rd worst is almost a compliment.
I think the Kings are in the worst position in their entire Sacramento history. There’s only ONE player on this team who is under 30 and likely to be a starter in two years, and that guy regresses every year, has a ceiling as a fifth starter and is about to be wildly overpaid. EVERY Kings player making more than $5 million is on a bad to terrible contract, and they have one of the most expensive rosters in the league. No one wants any of the veteran players without the Kings attaching assets.
Tanking won’t work any more, not that the Kings had two brain cells to rub together to tank in the first place. It would take years to unwind if competent people were running the team, and that’s not happening as long as Vivek is in charge.
Vivek:
I am actually shocked that they didn’t finish at the top of the list.
Do you blame ’em?
We’re one of the best at something!
As a Kings fan this is nothing new. When Webber was traded here he almost held out in protest, only to fall in love with the team and the city. With J-will the team became a desired destination, then even after he was traded we saw a continuous stream of solid free agents pass through between 1997 and 2004.
After watching two great young teams battle last nite in epic game it is even more depressing when you realize that even if Vivek sold to great owners Kings may be a decade away from being serious west contenders .
I mean… it’s just a list of lottery teams.
Winning fixes things.
Shocking! Vivek should put together a task force to figure out why.
Are you kidding me? This is insulting. The Kings are bad at so many things, but if I’m a player I DEFINITELY want to be traded here. I’m going to be rewarded with a contract I don’t deserve if I stink. If I’m good, I’ll either be let go (IT, Bogi, DDV) or traded for pennies on the dollar to a legitimate team or a cool city (Barnes, Fox, Heurter, Mitchell, Hali). I can stat hunt all I want at the end of my career, and my season is effectively over before the all-star break over 80% of the time. I guess maybe the existential realization that either (A) my career is at a dead end or (B) I’m going to have to suffer in basketball hell before going to a real team is problematic. But otherwise? Sign me up.
[Apologies to Domas who has been a consumate pro and Monk whose name means King and he’s been my favorite player to watch when you know the team is hot garbage on the whole.] I assume Keegan will get traded in the next 18 months since I bought his Jersey after that playoff series, and no one else has endeared me enough to care at this point.
Sad that Domas needs to be traded for Kings future and his . He deserves better and will always be a favorite . A total unselfish super competitor .
If you are a Kings head coach, it’s a dream job because you’re guaranteed at least two years of paid vacation time.
lol
Pretty sure we’d be top three of teams people didn’t want to be a fan of too
#1 among masochists, though.
Us celebrating when we kept the team:
I can hear this GIF
But we have a nice arena and jerseys…
Did anyone watch Flemming’s shooting motion at the combine? Disgusting.
I do not want him at all if he can’t shoot. So that’s probably who Perry will take. I’m assuming acuff will be gone.
That plus the fact that Flemming talked about being some kind of solid, good player and acuff talked about being a superstar.
The king’s desperately need players with high ceilings. They don’t need a fucking maybe average point guard.
Idiots not tanking. I wanted Peterson.(or AJ etc). And despite what people are saying, if his injuries are not bad, he’s gonna be awesome. Or at least we know he can shoot.
Badge Legend