The most painful part of a rebuild is upon us: the teardown.
The first domino falls
Scott Perry has made his first official move of the latest and greatest Sacramento Kings rebuild and it’s a bit of a head scratcher. The Kings moved Keon Ellis and Dennis Schröder to Cleveland for De’Andre Hunter, while also sending a 2029 second-round pick to Chicago to take Dario Saric off our hands. For weeks now, we had been told the Kings had been seeking a first-round pick for Ellis and that half the teams in the NBA were interested in him, so it was interesting that in the end, Ellis was instead used as a sweetener to get off a bad contract.
I would have preferred to see the Kings get draft capital in return for Ellis given this team’s future trajectory (what I really would have preferred was keeping Ellis long term, but that seemed out of the cards since last summer), but I do think this trade has helped the Kings do a couple of things. For one, it has finally cleared some space up in the backcourt, which should open up time for young guys like Nique Clifford and even Devin Carter. The Kings also got a wing in De’Andre Hunter to help give them depth at their weakest position (Keegan Murray is the only other real wing on the roster).
Clearly, the Kings viewed Hunter and the opportunity to remove Schröder’s contract off the books as more valuable than a late first round pick or couple of seconds they were being offered. I would have agreed a couple of years ago when a player like Hunter actually seemed to fit the Kings timeline and would have been a welcome addition. Now it’s more of just a salary dump, as Hunter is 28 years old with one more year and $24.9 million remaining on his contract after this one. There’s also the scary thought that Perry and the Kings view Hunter as someone who will actually be helping the team win at some point in the next year or two, which again, points to a short-term mindset that has plagued this franchise for two decades.
Is it possible that Sacramento is just hoping that Hunter could recoup some of his value as a 3-and-D wing with the Kings and they could move him next year? Sure, and that would make this more reasonable. But more likely than not, this was just another classic case of the Kings having to use an asset (Keon) to get off a self-inflicted mistake (Schröder). To recap, the Kings traded Jonas Valanciunas to Denver for Dario Saric this summer in order to clear up the cap space needed to be able to offer Schröder a 3 year, $44 million contract. In his introduction press conference, Perry called Schröder a “building block” and “the number one guy” that they were after in the offseason. The Kings had needed a Point Guard this summer, but they could have just signed Russell Westbrook to a minimum contract and called it a day, which they did anyway. It only took the Kings about three weeks into the season to know they had made a mistake and move Shcröder to the bench in favor of Westbrook, and now Schröder has been traded mid-season for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
All this is not even to mention how badly the Kings screwed up the Keon Ellis situation itself. Ellis was a rare diamond in the rough for the Kings, an undrafted prospect that had worked himself into one of the team’s top defenders and shooters and should have been poised to be the team’s starting shooting guard for a while. Instead, his minutes and role were constantly in flux, even dating back to last year. The Kings had the opportunity to make Ellis a restricted free agent this summer and re-sign him long term, but instead picked up his cheap team option and faced losing him in free agency for nothing, as it was hard to see Ellis agreeing to sign an extension to remain in this shit show. Right now, the biggest winner of this trade is Ellis himself, who now gets to go to a very good team in Cleveland and hopefully establish himself as a key contributor to a good team.
The NBA’s trade deadline is this Thursday, so hopefully this trade is just the start because if this is it, call me underwhelmed.
The greatest tank battle of our time
The Kings currently hold the worst record in the NBA thanks to a season-long nine-game losing streak, the latest of which was an absolute masterclass in tanking as the Kings lost 116 to 112 against the Washington Wizards. The craziest part is that the Kings were quite clearly trying to win this game. Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan both played 30+ minutes and each scored 30+ points. The Wizards meanwhile, saw their starters doing too well and basically benched them at halftime. Washington ran out a fourth-quarter lineup featuring AJ Johnson (averaging 2.3 points per game this year), Anthony Gill (1.8 points), Will Riley (5.9 points), Sharife Cooper (1.4 points), and SKAL LABISSIERE (6.5 points on a 10 day contract where he hasn’t played meaningful NBA minutes since 2020) and the Kings STILL couldn’t manage to come out on top. This team is absolutely putrid, but in the end, it might be worth it if it secures the keys to the future in one of these top draft prospects. Also, for those wondering, the longest losing streak in the Sacramento-era is 12 games, so the Kings are just three away from tying that.
Darryn Peterson is incredible
Like many of you I suspect, the biggest Kings game of the week for me was not one in which the Kings actually played, but rather the Saturday matchup between BYU and Kansas which pitted AJ Dybantsa against Darryn Peterson. Up until this point, I had not actually watched Peterson play aside from highlights. Now I have to say I’m a believer. He was absolutely electric in the first half against BYU, making shot after shot and looking so smooth as he did so. My favorite play, aside from his driving poster dunk, was this steal where he then calmly pulled up into a quick midrange jumper against the taller Dybantsa. College players almost never look this refined, and the scary thing is that Peterson probably isn’t even 100% yet. Peterson did most of his work in the first half (18 points, 3 steals on 6 of 8 shooting) as he sat much of the second resting his hamstring that has been giving him trouble all season.
Dybantsa looked much more like an actual college player, with great physical tools and some nice flashes, but still with lots to learn on both ends of the court. I’d still love to have the opportunity to draft him, as I think he has star potential, but Peterson (and Cameron Boozer) are clearly in their own tier and look ready to dominate starting day 1.
Check out the highlights from the game yourself if you didn’t get a chance to watch it live:
A well-deserved promotion
One positive note from the Ellis trade was the news that Dylan Cardwell is set to be converted from a two-way player to a standard NBA contract. Cardwell has become a fan favorite this year with his defensive effort and hustle, and it’s actually having a real impact rather than just being a feel-good story. Cardwell is the only Kings player with a positive net rating this season, meaning the Kings (the current worst team in the league) have actually been better than their opponent in the time he’s been on the floor. The Kings defensive rating with Cardwell on the floor is 107.7. For reference, the Thunder have the best defensive rating in the league at 105.8 and the Pistons are second at 108.3. Cardwell is already one of the best shot blockers in the entire league, ranking 9th in blocks per game despite playing just 19.8 minutes per game. If you look at block rate for players who have played at least 200 minutes this season, Cardwell is 4th, right behind Victor Wembanyama. Not bad for an undrafted rookie. Hopefully the Kings can keep Cardwell around and actually have a true rim protector for once.
Now’s your time to shine Devin Carter
If there’s anyone who benefits most from the most recent Kings trade, it’s likely Devin Carter, who might actually get some rotation minutes now that both Keon Ellis and Dennis Schröder have left. Carter has played double digit minutes in both of the last two games and hopefully that continues to be the case. The Kings need to see what they have in Carter, and the only way to do that is by giving him actual meaningful playing time. From what I’ve seen these last two games, he’s still a bit passive for my liking, as he’s passed up too many open looks and deferred to the veterans, but as he gets more comfortable I’d like to see some of that fire he showed at Providence. This is his opportunity to try to make a name for himself in the NBA, whether it’s here or elsewhere.
***
Upcoming Schedule:
- Wednesday, February 4th vs. Memphis Grizzlies
- Friday, February 6th vs. L.A. Clippers
- Saturday, February 7th vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
What give me a chuckle is the Kings now project to be not only a tax paying team, but an apron team. They aren’t as of today, but if you factor in the hight first round pick’s salary scale and the remaining open roster spots, they will go into the tax for the first time in the Vivek era. This is een the case if they they simply cut DDR and eat the $10M of his partially guaranteed deal. I just laugh at that…being a taxpayer after being one of the worst and oldest teams.
If I were Perry, I’d be doing whatever I can to cut salary. He’s got to acquire some expiring deals before the deadline Thursday. If he doesn’t I can envision some crazy Kangz bullshit, like attaching the high lottery pick to an undesired contract (LaVine) to trade down a few spots to save cash. Hypothetically, how would you all feel if the Kings attached the #2 pick to LaVine to trade to the Grizz for Ja and the #6 pick? Crazy as it sounds, I could see it happening.
I’d believe anything at this point.
I mean even the Raiders, the RAIDERS, are finally making a break, tearing it down to the studs, and admitting that they are in long-term rebuild mode.
As far as I know, they are the only other team in professional sports who have never attempted a full, from scratch rebuild. (For decades, Al Davis’s refrain was, “the Raiders don’t rebuild, they reload.”)
For the love of God, if even the Raiders can see the light after decades in the wilderness, you would think the Kings could.
Vivek’s ego is actually bigger than Al’s, and if you’re old enough to remember Al Davis in his prime, that’s really saying something.
Of course, Al also won three Super Bowls, so at least he had some justification for his massive ego and hubris.
I saw a book title last night that made me think of Vivek, and I think I’m going to use it as his nickname going forward…
Hubris Maximus
Seems an appropriate title for a dismissive little chap.
Elon Ranadive?!
The Buffalo Bills never really did a tear-it-down style rebuild. Well at least not since the mid-80s, when Jim Kelly opted to go to the USFL and they got Bruce Smith as a consolation prize a couple years later. After that it was Kelly-Flutie-(sigh)-Johnson-Bledsoe-Losman-Edwards-Fitz-Orton-Manuel-Taylor-Allen with a few other QBs in between, but there was never a full house cleaning. Both Wilson and Pegula intended to be competitive every year and their highest draft pick in that time ended up being Marcel Dareus of all dudes at #3.
Arguably the Warriors never really tore it down either – they just spent 35 years in the same purgatory we’re in now with the Kings and got insanely lucky with Curry/Klay/Draymond.
Both of those teams had playoff success. The Kings are in a class of their own when it comes to ineptitude.
I wonder if Vivek had his way in Golden State, and they held on to Monta Ellis and shipped off a young Curry… that team would’ve never happened.
Instead he’s over here in Sac sabotaging our success. Dude has to be a mole at this point, that’s really the only explanation.
I think Morant would quit on this team before he ever even starts, and the Kings would Bagley themselves again by moving down. This sounds exactly like the kind of thing Vivek would jump at.
So the Kings now have to clean up their mistake in trading for Hunter after trading for him to cover their previous mistakes in dumping Valanciunas, signing Schroder and not offering Keon Ellis? Sounds about right.
Agreed on all points.
MorantMoront would be so Kangzy… hopefully we get him (reverse jinx)Replacing one problem with another and giving up the better pick for the privilege of doing so? Definitely seems like a move Perry would be interested in.
I am absolutely, positively, 100% convinced that this was a Vivek-directed move to try and “win now”.
For years we’ve been screaming that we needed another wing, and now here we are two years too late, with a 28 year wing who doesn’t fit the future timeline, but *does* fit the present one.
Insanity.
There likely won’t be any other moves, and if there are, it will simply look like chair shuffling as Vivek convinces himself that a few moves around the edges, that don’t cost too much, are all this team needs to be competitive again.
After 41 seasons, I’m at my breaking point. If they don’t blow this up and start over, I think I’m finally, fully out.
The reality as I see it is Hunter is just Harrison Barnes 2.0, only not as good. This move would only make sense in my mind if the Kings can move off of DDR for expirings. Could Doug run a Brown styled offense around Sabonis with Keegan, Hunter and LaVine in the roles of Keegan, Barnes, and Huerter? Highly doubtful. All I know is it is a far more expensive and older version of the Beam Team’s lineup. Oh…and there is still no PG.
I was just thinking about this today. What would we look like if we just kept that Beam Team around? Fox as the badly needed PG, Huerter/Keon at the two, Keegan, Sabonis, Barnes (still starting) and Malik as the sixth man. Toss in Davion, Lyles, JV(?) and take your pick at who would have been added over the past few drafts. Hell, keep Bagley. He’s only 26. We’ve just been watching the rather quick destruction of a team that showed promise with 48 wins to tinkering so much we have the most chaotic mess of a team in the League. And, I think it’s worth adding, that keeping Mike Brown would have held it together. Plus, there would be no hostages here (unless the stories are true that Sabonis wanted Brown gone….)
I am guessing from the players’ perspective, DeAndre Hunter is ready for his own Alexander Solzhenitsyn story, as The Sacramento Kings – not the City of Sacramento – is like being sentenced to the Gulag Archipeligo.
It’s really something when I have sympathy for a guy who is going to make $50M during this season and next, for being a bench player. But I do. A part of me almost wishes that Sacramento sign a player with a DeMarcus Cousins behavior problem just to make the coaches and GM extra miserable. Because it sure is a load of misery to follow this team. I can’t say I cheer for them. Well, not exactly; is hoping they lose cheering or jeering?
Again (and again and again and again) I ask – NBA, cares – HA! not one iota. How much longer is The Association, going to disassociate itself from what is happening here?
I guess the only other thing to do today, is to wait and see what happens on Thursday. I am hoping it will be big, but I know better than to expect it to be even a baby step ahead. I have the one solace in knowing that the people who claim to operate above the fray (Scott Perry and his Monday mumbojumbo) are exactly the type who read every word of their critics. They (int his case, Perry) will just absolve themselves of the responsibility of their actions by claiming that they are above criticism).
Perhaps my favorite critique of the Kings and this Hunter trade was done by Bill Simmons (and a similar version on Reddit) where he names a checklist of actions and calls it “The Vivek”. I like this, because I can foresee that when some other franchise does something similar, whether it be NFL, MLB or the NBA – he will invoke the term The Vivek to keep it in the vernacular.
He’s not wrong.
I didn’t watch the game, but noting the Isaiah Stevens played more minutes yesterday than Devin Carter did.
It’s just a matter of commitment. At first, Perry was completely IN on Dennis Schroder, but lately he was completely OUT on him!
There is no such thing as life in-between, so Scott decided not to opt for a decent or so-so deal. He fully committed to absolutely destroy his assets. That’s the path to success.
This team’s treatment of Keon needs an in-depth investigative report. From Coaches refusing to play him, not making him a RFA, to this…trade. Guy was jerked around more than Jamaican-spiced chicken.
I hope he absolutely kills it in Cleveland. That would make the Kings front office and staff look all the worse.
Will be checking a second team’s box score each time they play now. Shred ’em, Keon.
Another grade of the trade, this time from Bleacher Report. Cavs and Bulls both get A’s, Kangz get a D lol.
Sounds like a fair grade
It’s true, Perry did inherit someone else’s problem.
This trade is exactly my issue with “tearing it all down.” I would be 100% good with an OKC tearing it all down where we trade our vets for expiring contracts, picks, young players, etc. Pre CBA that was a lot easier. Add that to the fact that many of our vets aren’t even tradable for expirings, but only other bad contracts. Throw terrible ownership into the fire. And you end up with us trading veterans, picks, and players we should actually be keeping, like Ellis, for other bad contracts.
In the last year, we have gone from being an exciting team that wasn’t advancing in the playoffs to a boring team that isn’t advancing in the playoffs. My guess is that if we somehow trade DDR, Lavine, and Sabonis, that we will end up losing picks to move people, and breaking bigger contracts that expire soon into smaller contracts that are expiring later, and a team that is just as bad and even more boring to watch.
I don’t have a magic fix. But I believe people who think we can get off our three veteran contracts while bringing back more picks and expiring deals (e.g. tear it down to the studs) are going to be very disappointed.
The only players that have value right now are the players who we actually want to rebuild with. I mean if we can get something of value, or even cap space, for Sabonis, great. But the only way we’re getting out of this hole is waiting for our bad deals to expire and being terrible enough to get high picks that we hopefully don’t waste.
I understand the criticism, but as you say yourself:
I think that is exactly the reason why many are supporting the tank/rebuild model, because the closest thing to a “magix” fix is getting lucky in the lottery and draft and get that magic player that can elevate the team and organization.
And if nobody has another remotely viable plan for getting this franchise on track again, I don’t see why someone would oppose this path so much.
The only other way that i see is a fulll fledged effort to push Vivek into selling his stake or at least relingquishing his decisionmaking powers. That would require help from a sizable part of the fanbase and hetting local and natyional media behind you. I don’t believe something like that will happen.
Oh, I’m all about losing. I mean that’s one thing we are doing great. My issue is that I’d rather just let our big vet deals expire than trade them unless we really are getting picks or expiring deals. Right now it feels like trading vets just for the sake of moving them and giving up picks to make it happen. Yesterday’s deal was moving deck chairs in my opinion. Unless we find a team saying, here’s a pick for DDR, keep him the rest of the season and pay the $10m to get rid of him next season.
Ok, that makes some sense. Thanks.
But there’s also a cost to having the few young prospects we have spend their formative NBA years in the festering mess of high volume shooting / low effort defending veterans who don’t take their coach serious. Maybe not so big an issue with this bunch of young guys, but do you really want LaVine around the potential top 5 pick coming season?
Fair. I guess it really comes down to what we get or don’t get back. If we have to include picks or take back longer contracts, the only option might be to work out a deal to waive them. Should be better for the team and the players.
But, yeah, the real magic would be Vivek selling the team. probably the most unlikely fix to happen oof them all.
I am in a shared group for Kings season’s tickets. We’ve passed disgruntled. If they don’t show something other than this, with all the criticism, March’s season ticket renewal time is going to be tough. I am at the point where I just don’t know if I can justify spending a few thousand $$ in getting my 10 games and instead decide that not renewing and having many many others do the same, resulting in visible season ticket drop, is going to be the only avenue for The League to step in and nudge Ranadive out the door.
As long as the tear down starts in the front office I’m fine with it.
I’m done pretending the Kings organization wants to win. They turn a profit. That’s enough for them. It wouldn’t be enough for me, but I don’t own the team.
Exactly. The way I stay sane is by saying this….
“I follow an irrelevant NBA team.”
I do not even remotely expect them to approach the level of a franchise competing for championships.
Best of luck, Keon. I’ll continue to root for you.
What a dumpster fire of a front office and ownership group. You decline Keon’s option because you want cap flexibility. You swap Jonas for Saric to save money and to have flexibility. You then blow that cap flexibility on an insane overpay for Schroder when anyone who watched this team last season knew that Schroder wasn’t going to fix the issues. And now you give away Keon (and a second round pick!) to get off Schroder and Saric. What a joke.
Let the tank roll on, can’t wait to get a high pick so we can see what young talent we can waste and squander next.
Yeah, any excitement I would have had in a high draft pick is squashed by the knowledge that we’ll screw it up anyway.
All other GMs have to be falling over themselves to get the Kings to trade with them. Because any trade with the Kings is a win for the other team.
Now, none of them are making good offers, because you don’t have to. You just have to figure out what shiny, overpriced toy will grab Viveks attention so that you can fleece him and the front office.
This is the perfect description of how the Kings are doomed to always get taken advantage of.
Deandre Hunter is likely a negative value asset when injury history is factored in (missed 1/6th of games since he was drafted).
He’s the 5th-7th best player on a good team. He will likely be asked to be the 2nd – 4th best player with Sacramento. I feel like I’ve seen this movie before and I’m pretty sure I remember the ending.
Maybe the idea is to pump his value, kind of how Brooklyn did with Cam Johnson and is doing again with MPJ? He may get better value in a year’s time if he’s given starter minutes and has a positive production year. Hell if I know. All I do know is he is not going to make a dent int he win/loss column. Swap him out for DDR in the rotation and it’s likely a wash.
I agree that’s possible but 0% chance this front office is thinking of something like that. They are thinking about how to get season ticket holders to renew, not long term plans.
And because they never think longer term than the next few games, they will not increase his value.
Remember when putting Kegan back at SF was all the rage? That lasted about a month.
Most likely scenario is he’s an inefficient scorer with bad defense now that everyone around him doesn’t play defense. Kings trade him plus a 2nd next year to get off his contract and obtain someone worse on a longer term deal.
OK, by the very own calculations of this front office, Keon Ellis was worth a late 1st rounder. So by their very own math, they traded a late 1st round equivalent, plus a future 2nd rounder. to get out of deals they made just a few months ago.
Let’s state that again. The Kings front office gave up the equivalent (by their very own math) of late 1st and 2nd round picks to get out of players that the very same front office sought and acquired just a few months ago.
You can’t make this shit up.
It’s like that meme of a cycle of behavior by a certain world leader:
1) Make a bad decision.
2) Feel effects of bad decision.
3) Attempt to take credit for trying to fix bad decision.
4) Reverse bad decision with another bad decision to start back on step 1
It’s like trying to jump out of pained corner only to land in another painted corner.
So I guess the Lakers really wanted Keon. I would have been more satisfied had the Kings sent Dennis and Keon to the Lakers for Rui’s expiring deal. Alas, maybe it was never on the table or maybe Dennis and Luka really do have a beef.
I remember when the Lakers (Pelinka) screwed McNair on the Buddy Hield deal.
IF he were still the GM no way he would’ve traded to the LAL
Just think of the chain of events that ordeal set off. If Buddy had gone to the Lakers, would there have been a Sabonis trade? The Kings were supposed to get Kuzma in that deal. Butterfly flaps its wings…
The Wiz game cracked me up.
They sat Sarr and Tre Johnson. The starters played well in the first half so they sat them. The guys that finished averaged about 4 ppg and they pulled it out! Good for them and good for the Kings but, no matter, the Kings may get into the top 3 in the end but will be bypassed by 3 lucky lottery winners, get the 6-7 pick and blow it. If there is a hidden loser in the draft, the Kings will find him.
I am now a Spurs fan- Barnes is an upright guy, I have always loved Fox and the rest of those guys are good players. In 2 decades, I can come back to the Kings.
For the Kings, this sh..t show of a season has to result in a top 3 pick but it won’t.
I loved Keon. Now: trade them all and quit complaining.
Lose all the rest of the games. ALL – Kings are in the winners seat. Have to take advantage.
Starting line up: Eubanks, Dougie, Plowden, Stephens, and the trainer guy.
So what are the odds now of Sabonis being dealt to Toronto? The rumor has been an RJ Barrett package with either Peoltl or Quickley. With the addition of Hunter, I would think Barrett is less appealing to the Kings now, but who knows. What I absolutely don’t want to see is a Quickly and Poeltl package. I know the Kings don’t have a PG now, but Quickley isn’t all that much better of a PG than Monk is, and he comes at twice the price.
I am wondering how much the bad press is effecting Perry/Armstrong either directly or indirectly (Vivek/Matina)
Also, t the last post game presser, Doug Christie seemed a beaten man- quiet, and somewhat despondent
Yeah, I haven’t seen one positive spin on this trade for the Kings in national media. There have been a few that are like, “Ok, it’s isn’t all bad,” but no one has said the Kings won the trade.
I imagine it has to sting the little chap’s ego.
Nah. Remember, Vivek is playing NBA 3.0, while the rest of the league is still playing NBA 2.0.
Kayte: “See, what NBA beat reporters don’t understand is…”
Vivek’s ego won’t ever let him believe he isn’t 5 steps ahead of everyone else.
Doug might be a really bad coach but he’s not an idiot and he’s realized what this is going to be. He’s going to get to coach some of the most losing seasons ever in Sac for the next few years then he will be fired as soon as they are “good” or better again.
Doug, like Vlade and Peja, is realizing the tarnish that was self inflicted by all involved. Took some money and got hustled for your hard earned equity that you built on the court.
None of the heyday kings should be around the game at a professional level. With the exception of Bobby or ironically Bibby if he keeps working from the bottom up.
That’s fantastic.
Can he do a rant against Vivek? Please? I can’t wait until he ends up saying “Vivek, you’re the problem.” That would be gold.
If another trade comes and doesn’t get us any picks then what are we even doing? Might as well change our name to the Sacramento
KingsTalent Incubator and NBA Retirement HomePlaying around with the trade machine this morning…
T-Wolves get:
Monk
Eubanks
Kings get:
Conley (expiring $10m)
Joan Beringer (young prospect, 19yo)
Rob Dillingham (may have talent to play a role?)
I’d love to poach Beringer, but I’ve got a feeling the Wolves are very high on him. I think he is Gobert’s heir apparent.
Wolves need a PG, and Monk is not it. Besides, Wolves are desperate for Giannis, so this may screw things up.
New plan: Let’s build around Jakob Poeltl.
Badge Legend