Sacramento Kings: Time To Cut Losses And Tank
By Greg Chin
Well, it was fun while it lasted. The Sacramento Kings started their season well with a 9-5 start, sparking discussions as to whether the Kings could actually make the postseason in the competitive Western Conference. However, viral meningitis caused DeMarcus Cousins to miss 10 games, and resulted in the Kings going 2-8 over that stretch.
What was once a bright start to the season quickly turned into a 12-15 hole by the time Cousins returned to the starting lineup. To make matters worse, head coach Mike Malone – the one whom many attributed Cousins’ improvement in his attitude to, was fired while Cousins was still recuperating from the infection.
The front office cited differences and believed that Malone had underachieved with this team. Many disagreed with their assessment, as a 9-6 record (before Cousins missed games) was almost inconceivable before the season started. Plus, they had one of the toughest schedules to start the season, and their December schedule was slated to be easier.
However, it wasn’t enough to change the front office’s mind, and they subsequently let Malone go. It came as a shock to the rest of the league – no one anticipated Malone would be fired, especially with no clear successor planned.
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After striving so hard to no longer be referred to as a laughingstock in the league, the Kings destroyed everything they had been working for in the season in one fell swoop.
Now, with Tyrone Corbin in charge, the Kings have gone 4-8 over their last 12 games, leaving them with a 15-21 record. With the exception of the win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Kings have only managed to notch wins against teams at the bottom of the league (Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks).
With almost half the season gone, it’s time to face the hard facts: the Sacramento Kings are not going to make the playoffs. We’re not talking about the weak Eastern Conference here, where their 15-21 record would have tied with the Miami Heat for eighth spot. This is the wild, wild West, where the top eight are all above .500.
With the Denver Nuggets reportedly interested in clearing out their roster and focusing on the tank, the Kings are put in a precarious position: continue fighting for an improbable eighth-seed finish, or focus on the development of youngsters such as Nik Stauskas, Ben McLemore, and Ray McCallum.
This Kings’ roster is a motley crew of high potential youngsters, veterans on their last legs, and players in their prime. It is a product of their wanton desire to push all the chips into the pot, and go all-in for a playoff spot. Using the rest of the season to properly assess what players to keep or to let go would be a wise choice, as a lot of them haven’t quite reached their full potential.
The trade deadline for the NBA is Feb. 19, which leaves the Kings with a little more than a month to deal away some of their players. The Knicks, Nuggets, and the Boston Celtics have openly accepted the tanking process, trading away any of their productive players for as many draft picks as they can get their hands on.
The Kings need to look at this, and start seriously considering following suit.
The magic number for the eighth seed in the West is 48 wins. To achieve that, the Kings would have to go 33-13 just to be in the race. It’s unlikely, and nearly impossible for them to do so. But the bad news isn’t over just yet – the Kings owe the Chicago Bulls their 2015 first-round draft pick, unless it falls between the 1-10 selection range.
And so, because of this, it’s not enough for the Kings to just be bad – they have to be one of the worst 10 teams in the league. If the season were to end today, the Kings would be 19th in the league.
The lottery is always hard to predict, but if we make the assumption that the teams with the three worst records in the league all receive a pick within the top three, the Kings would have the 11th selection in the draft, which forces them to convey it to the Bulls.
So, what happens then? The Kings are left with a roster that isn’t good enough to make it to the playoffs, are without a lottery pick, and with no foreseeable plan for the future. Even if the Kings don’t intend to select a rookie with the pick, it could be used as a trade asset, and help lure a quality player to Sacramento.
Of course, tanking isn’t without its downside. After a start to the season that left many raving about how mature Cousins is, he’s racked up three technical fouls since Mike Malone was fired. Signs of frustration are bubbling under the surface, and it’s a matter of when and not if Cousins eventually loses it.
It’s a shame to see the regression in Cousins’ attitude, but it’s almost understandable, given that they fired his mentor and the disappointing results since then. Convincing Cousins to be on board with the tanking job could be difficult – he’s already played through four losing campaigns. And it would also be an admission from the front office that they made a mistake firing Malone.
Which is why, I don’t think it’s going to happen. Vivek Ranadive, the eccentric owner, has made it clear that he wants to win. He’s played a key role in the team’s affairs (which has turned out poorly so far), and it’s unlikely that he would be willing to concede the season.
The worst-case scenario is if they make a panic trade before the deadline, and give away whatever assets they have left, only to finish outside the top 10, and end up conveying their pick to Chicago.
Tanking isn’t always the solution, but in this case, it is the best thing Sacramento can do. At 9-6 and with Mike Malone at the helm, I would have said to avoid the tank and build up the young roster. Having a semi-relevant season could do wonders for this team and the progression of the youngsters.
However, at 15-21 with a questionable coach and no foreseeable plan for the future, the organization needs to know when to fold and count their losses.