Ah I remember when the Sacramento Kings were good. As in
damn good. At the turn of the century the Kings were the most exciting team in
the NBA; with their intoxicating, fast paced, selfless – and most importantly –
winning style of play. Sacramento was the hardest place to play in the league -
a beacon of small market success. They were a dream to watch. Brash young point
guard Jason “White Chocolate” Williams (John Stockton’s evil twin) was dropping
jaws (and selling jerseys – good for top 5 in the league his rookie year) in
living rooms across the country with his outrageous behind the back, pinpoint,
fast as a bullet, lookaways. Peja Stojakovic was jovially sinking three balls
like layups. Chris Webber and Vlade Divac were defying the laws of being big –
nimbly threading needle like passes in the paint to form a devastating interior
tag team since unrivalled. Even when they lost Williams, their flashy fulcrum,
for the pretty mundane Mike Bibby in 2001 – they were still one of the best teams
to watch; and flat out best teams, in the league, and enjoyed 2 more seasons of
contending for a championship.
From ’03 to ’05 things started to go downhill. Then in ’06 they
fell off a cliff.
The last 7 years for the Kings have been nothing short of a
nightmare; the franchise almost suffocated under a barrage of dodgy front
office decisions, overrated players, ugly basketball and a lot of losing. Last
season the Kings were on life support and were a Board of Governors meeting
away from being sold and relocated to Seattle – a city still heartbroken from
its own NBA breakup. They were given life, however, when NBA pogo-stick come
politician - and current Mayor of Sacramento - Kevin Johnson rallied the troops
and orchestrated a dramatic off the court fourth quarter comeback, bringing
together a consortium led by business tycoon Vivek Ranadive to buy the
franchise from the Maloof family – keeping the Kings in Sacramento - and ushering
in a welcome new era, with a new arena on the way, for the city and it’s
beloved but forgotten Kings.
The new era has already seen a near overhaul of the entire organization.
The Owners…
Given the Maloof family's sad indifference to the misfortunes
of the franchise, which bordered on willful neglect in the last few seasons,
any change is a good change in ownership.
The family was replaced by business tycoon Vivek Ranadive
and friends.
When the deal saving the Kings went through, Vivek called his
young center Demarcus Cousins and said, as his buddy Steve Jobs used to, “Let’s
put a dent in the universe”. This tells us a few things; 1) He’s a pretty
successful businessman with pretty successful buddies, 2) He’s ambitious (let’s
try and put a dent in the Pacific Division before we take on the universe
Vivek), 3) He understands that Cousins is a big part of the puzzle going
forward, and 4) He actually gives a rats ass.
The Front Office…
Geoff Petrie and his prehistoric philosophy on scouting,
analytics, and cap management have hurt the Kings in recent years. Petrie had
highs and lows in his 19 year career in Sacramento – highs included - 8
straight playoff appearances, a Game 7 away from the NBA finals in 2002, and 2x
Executive of the Year Awards. Lows included – 7 straight playoff no-shows, trading
Mike Bibby for some pots and pans, drafting Jimmer Fredette (and taking on some
bad, bad contracts to do it), and drafting Thomas Robinson over Damian Lillard,
Harrison Barnes and Andre Drummond. He was a class act throughout, but is a
relic in a new age dominated by metrics and mini-mid levels.
His replacement – new General Manager Pete D’Alessandro – is
a massive upgrade. He is the antithesis of Petrie as a true 21st
century GM well versed in the arts of capology and analytics. After 3
successful seasons in Denver’s front office, Pete’s fingerprints are already
all over the Kings roster – drafting Ben McLemore with the 7th pick,
freeing up a starting guard spot for Ben by deciding not to re-sign Tyreke
Evans, but getting some value for him by bringing in underrated point guard
Greivis Vasquez in a sign and trade, bringing in Carl Landry in free agency,
and somehow getting Mbah a Moute for two second round picks – an absolute bargain.
That’s 4 starters to go along with Demarcus Cousins in the middle.
The rebuild is in full swing only a couple of months into
D’Alessandro’s time in Sacramento.
The Coaching Staff…
With the epic ownership and front office failures – it’s no
wonder there have been 5 coaches in 6 years in Sactown. With the coaching
carousel working overtime, the team was denied the stability and time needed to
create an on court identity. It also fractured player development on a roster
full of young talent in need of consistent direction. After orchestrating the aforementioned "Greatest Show On Earth”, Rick Adelman’s highly successful time on the sidelines
was inexplicably ended in 2006 by ownership who neglected to re-sign arguably
the best Coach in Kings history (possibly the dumbest decision in Kings
history), paving the way for a 7 year playoff drought and a period of coaching
chaos….
Erik Musselman was a dud after a losing season and numerous
run-ins with the law. His replacement Reggie Theus was remembered for being at
the helm when Mike Bibby was controversially traded and introducing a one-two
punch of Kevin Martin and Spencer Hawes… unsurprisingly he didn’t last long.
Kenny Natt led the Kings to the worst record in the league in his 1 year in
charge. Paul Westphaul ended the 1 and done streak with 3 seasons on the
sidelines – but failed to mesh the young duo of Evans and Cousins and was let
go halfway into the 11/12 season after butting heads with the latter. Keith
Smart was a cheap replacement and posted an uninspiring 48-93 record in 1 and a
half seasons on the sidelines, eventually moving Tyreke to his natural shooting
guard spot after initially trying him at small forward (where he was
uncomfortable and in constant foul trouble). He was axed at the end of last
season as soon as the new ownership group took over.
Enter Mike Malone for the start of the 2013/14 season.
Malone was handpicked by Ranadive after spending time
together in Golden State (Where Ranadive was a minority owner and Malone was an
Assistant last year). He’s a defensive strategist who has had a hand in
defensive leaps in his last 2 coaching roles – the Hornets in 10/11 jumped from
21st the previous year to 5th in opponents PPG, and the
Warriors in 12/13 jumped from 28th the previous year to 19th.
He is widely respected as an Assistant throughout the league, and was in demand
this summer as a Head Coaching candidate – but looked no further than
Sacramento because of his close relationship with the new owner – who has
assured Malone that he will be given time, and won’t be expected to perform any
miracles this year. As a rookie Head Coach, his inexperience will be mitigated
by the addition of his Dad, former NBA Head Coach Brendan Malone, as an
Assistant to his staff.
He’s a promising new coach, and if he can in any way live up
to his lofty, “Next Tom Thibodeau” label – he’ll be doing just fine.
The Roster…
As a shooter, lottery pick Ben McLemore should be a better
fit with Cousins than Evans, who was an improved but unspectacular shooter and
more at home at the rim than on the perimeter last year. Cousins and McLemore
will form a more traditional post-perimeter one-two punch – as well as saving
the Kings a hefty wad of cash with an extension for Evans.
The offensive foundation of Cousins/McLemore will benefit
greatly from the addition of Greivis Vasquez. The Venezuelan is a point guard
with size and excellent playmaking ability to take advantage of his elevated
vantage point. More savvy than strong and clever than quick, Vasquez was a
pleasant surprise for the Pelicans (Hornets) last season – displaying a
reliable shooting touch and array of floaters in the paint. His real strength
is in his pass first mentality; good for 3rd in the league at 9
dimes a game last season on a bad offensive team. Impressively, this pass first
mentality is something he has developed since getting into the league,
adjusting his game from coming out of college where he was a shoot first point
guard at Maryland. At 26, he’s fairly young, and is a steady pure point guard –
who shouldn’t be too expensive should the Kings decide to retain him after next
season - the last year of his current deal.
The gamble with Vasquez is on the defensive end – where he
has a reputation as a liability. This is where Mike Malone can earn his money,
creating a system to hide his lack of quickness and limit his vulnerability to
the Ty Lawson’s of this world. His struggles on that end of the floor
notwithstanding, he’s an upgrade from Isaiah Thomas – whose offensive minded
game is better suited to giving the second unit scoring punch than setting the
table for Cousins and McLemore, and who isn’t exactly a defensive juggernaught
himself.
At small forward the Kings have bought in Luc Mbah a Moute
from the Bucks for two second round picks. This is a steal for a guy with a lot
of talent at a reasonable cost - 2 years and 9 million remaining on his
contract. GM D’Alessandro has long sought after Luc, after signing him to an
offer sheet with the Nuggets in 2011, only to have the offer matched by the
Bucks. He’s probably one of the best kept defensive secrets in the league –
capable of guarding multiple positions and an excellent isolation defender on
the wing. His knock is his shooting, which was at a career low (he wasn’t
healthy) 40% last year, the same clip that John Salmons (who really needs to be
amnestied) shot in the starting SF spot last year – so you won’t be losing
anything offensively. His sale price of a couple of second rounders has a lot
to do with health woes the last two years, which is a worry going forward for
the Kings, but if healthy he’s a brilliant pickup.
The latest addition of the summer has been signing free
agent forward Carl Landry, who has played 81 games in two separate stints with
the Kings in 09/10 and 10/11. In the first stretch, over 28 games with starters
minutes – Landry averaged 18 points and 6 boards a game. In his third stretch
in Sacramento, Landry is coming over from Golden State with Mike Malone. He’s a
consistent and efficient, 53% from the field over his 8 year career, scorer who
will bring a veteran presence to the locker room. With previous ties to both
the organization and the new Head Coach – Landry should fit right in.
With ownership, the front office, and coaching staff on the
same page for the first time in a long time; and a promising, hopefully
balanced and complimentary starting unit – it’s not crazy to call this the
beginning of the end of the nightmarish playoff drought in California’s
capital.
Better late than never I suppose.
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