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They have failed to qualify for the playoffs every year since the 2005-06 season and are a year away from tying the record for most consecutive years missed. Last season it looked like they turned a corner and although they came up short, it appeared there was some light at the end of the tunnel for once.
Except, they took a huge step backwards this season. Their play in the bubble was less than stellar. The firing of Dave Jorger was questionable and the end result of replacing him w/ Luke Walton so far does not look promising. Marvin Bagley is an okay player when healthy IMO, but he's no Luka Doncic (whom the Kings passed on), and he was injured more often than not. Buddy Hield had a breakout season last year but regressed and called out the coaching staff. De'Aaron Fox did the same thing as well IIRC after a loss.
Divac stepped down as GM but I think a lot of their problems go back to the owner. We've all seen the video where he "pressures" the Kings to draft Nik Stauskas in 2014 even when the outside help the GM at the time brought in suggested drafting Elfrid Payton who was seen as someone that would fit better w/ the roster at that time. This is now year 7 of his ownership and while he did save the franchise from relocation, they are no better off than they were when the Maloofs tried to relocate them and eventually sold them off.
So what happens with them now? Do you guys think they could pull a 2017-18 Timberwolves and sneak in a spot or are we looking at them potentially breaking the record for most years missed? If that happens, what becomes of the future of Fox in a Kings uniform? Their bad drafting history suggests this would be a huge blow since Fox is one of the few picks that actually panned out.
I'd like to see them in the playoffs again. I remember how loud Arco Arena was in the 2000's even in the years after [i]The Greatest Show on Court[i] was starting to be dis-assembled. They have a great fan base, but no one should be blaming the fans for not showing up (I saw a lot of empty seats last year) when they keep spinning their wheels in the mud.
They need the players, but who wants to go to Sacramento when there are so many other locations to go to. Teams can only thrive for so long with their developing draft picks, eventually they need established players.
Location: Huntersville/Charlotte, NC and Washington, DC
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I think the only way the Kings get back to respectability is if they have the luck of a once in a lifetime talent (Jordan, Lebron) fall to them in the lottery. They can forget about being remotely attractive in FA.
The city of Sacramento and ownership did really well in respecting their rabid fanbase in building a new arena to keep the team (who probably should've gone to Seattle), but they're probably never going to be more than they are...especially with the Warriors no longer being the joke of Northern California.
Unfortunately, much like my Cleveland Cavaliers, it's all about the luck of the draft lottery and the year of that lottery. And trades. For Sacramento, it's a HARD place to attract good free agents who could really change the franchise and put it over the top. So many other teams out there will want the same free agent and will be considered a "more attractive" place to live for said free agent. Nothing against Sacramento, but boy, NBA players seem like the most sensitive when it comes to living somewhere.
The best course of action for the Kings is hit gold in the lottery and draft a stud, which is not easy, or make a great trade for a player and hope they stay long enough to change things.
Golden State did it. They drafted well, hit on a few studs, then became great and was able to attract Kevin Durant. On the other hand, Cleveland landed gold in LeBron in 2003. Sure, he left and went to Miami, but he was an instant star in the NBA his rookie year and then became unstoppable in his time in Miami. When he came back, we had free agents wanting to come to *Cleveland* and they also made a few nice trades (Kevin Love). No one wanted to live in Cleveland probably (sadly), but it was seen as a way to win a title. And it happened.
That's likely the way Sacramento is going to have to do it, and they've done it before back in the early 2000's with Webber and Bibby and such.
Off-topic: But I'm still convinced the Kings were screwed in 2002.
I think the only way the Kings get back to respectability is if they have the luck of a once in a lifetime talent (Jordan, Lebron) fall to them in the lottery. They can forget about being remotely attractive in FA.
And crazy enough, that person could have been Luka. He was right there for the taking, Vlade Divac even knew him and his father, but still passed. Marvin Bagley is a decent player when healthy, but he's forever going to be remembered by Kings fans as the guy the franchise took over Luka, and at this stage of Bagleys career that's not a good thing.
But for all we know, Luka may not have panned out the way he is now if the Kings had taken him given their history of poor player development.
Location: Huntersville/Charlotte, NC and Washington, DC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Canes2006Champs
And crazy enough, that person could have been Luka. He was right there for the taking, Vlade Divac even knew him and his father, but still passed. Marvin Bagley is a decent player when healthy, but he's forever going to be remembered by Kings fans as the guy the franchise took over Luka, and at this stage of Bagleys career that's not a good thing.
But for all we know, Luka may not have panned out the way he is now if the Kings had taken him given their history of poor player development.
Those are some of the worst deals for a player in Bagley’s position. Bagley gets the ire of the fanbase when he didn’t do anything in his control to draw that ire.
I agree that Luka would probably not be on his Mavs level with the Kings since a fish rots from the head down the the smell hits everyone.
After watching the 2002 western conference finals against the lakers , where they were the better team but the series was rigged against them by the referee ( probably under orders from Stern since he didn’t want a small market in the Finals over second largest TV market in US , Los Angeles ) the Kings have still not recovered from that series. Their defeating silence about that gams outcome at the time as well as when it came out that the referee was taking payoffs to rig the game shows how pathetic the franchise is. Shame on California taxpayers getting hosed once again for their money for another useless arena that was built .
Officially eliminated from any kind of playoff or play-in contention after tonights loss to the Grizzlies. They have tied the record for most consecutive seasons missed at 15..
I would imagine that they cut Walton loose and get a new head coach but they've just completed another year where their young stars who are coming into their own (Fox in particular) won't be playing any meaningful games post-regular season.
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