Sacramento Kings: Evaluating Vlade’s Actions & His Current Roster

How is Vlade Divac doing as the Sacramento Kings’ main decision maker? Has his team gotten better since taking over?

To answer this question, it would depend on what “better” is to you? If it means playing as a team with young guns and upside, then I guess he is doing alright. But if it means more wins, considering they only won 27 games, it would be a big fat “No!”. Some might say win more games than DeMarcus Cousins did when he played with the Kings. Thirty-three wins was the most Sacramento won with Boogie, so another fat “No!” to that.

Are the Kings good at developing talent?

Maybe the question should be are the Kings developing players fast enough? The jury is still out on that answer. Dave Joerger is probably one of the better coaches the Kings have had in this area. In my opinion, Mike Malone and Keith Smart were good too.

Paul Westphal and George Karl were old school coaches who expected their players to be a professional. Not learn how to be professional! I am not saying they did not develop players, but they were not young and energetic coaches by the time they were with the Kings. So let us say their better days were behind them.

If Vlade gets dismissed, will Joerger go too?

The Kings’ roster right now consists of all players Vlade has acquired. So Joerger and Vlade are joined at the hip. If one fails at their job, they both fail. Both are signed till the 2019-2020 season, so there are no guarantees they last that long in this business.

If the team is not competing in the playoffs by then, I think Vlade will be gone. Joerger could survive the ax, but history says most of the time that both will go. One thing is for sure, this year’s Kings must start playing solid ball. The old “They are young and are rookies” saying is getting old.

What have been Vlade’s best trades so far?

The deal with the Phoenix Suns where the Kings traded the eighth pick (Marquese Chriss) for the 13th pick (Georgios Papagiannis), the 28th pick (Skal Labissiere), and the rights to Bogdan Bogdanovic was a great trade, in my opinion.

This was Vlade’s sleeper move! I did not know who Bogdan was prior so I followed his career over in the Euroleague. He was successful as he won the championship as well as many awards including the Finals MVP. Bogdan is the players that made this trade a steal!

What has been Vlade’s worst trade?

The trade Sacramento made with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2015 did not help Vlade’s reputation as a general manager. Many around the NBA circles said it was a poor choice as Vlade was promoted after three months of being Pete D’Alessandro’s right-hand man. On the bright side, Pete “D” made the decisions that cost us Isaiah Thomas and Michael Malone who were both fan favorites.

Vlade cannot be much worse than Pete “D”. Vlade wanted different types of players than the Kings had on their roster. The trade with the 76ers was a salary dump so he could get players he wanted. But this trade was considered a rookie move by Vlade.

Has Vlade brought good players to Sacramento?

I will say that De’Aaron Fox was a solid pick. Fox will be a quality player for years if his body holds up to the rigors of the long NBA season.

Marvin Bagley III is too early to tell. Buddy Hield is good and getting better as his hard work with Joerger and staff is starting pay off. And Bogdan did not play like a rookie last year as he has seen and done it all in Europe.

I loved the Vince Carter move as he is a walking scouting report. He has played against everyone except rookies, and the Kings should pay him just for that. Garrett Temple and Anthony Tolliver were solid for their character matters, and veterans like Kosta Koufos and Zach Randolph fitted in and showed the young guys how to make it in the NBA.

Has Vlade brought bad players to Sacramento?

Let us be honest, the draft has always been a gamble. The higher you pick, the better the odds are of one getting a good player.

Vlade’s worst draft pick was Georgios Papagiannis as Sacramento selected him at the 13th spot. Draft predictors had him in the late second round or not being drafted at all. Vlade is supposed to be keen on European players. This was just a wasted pick.

Skal Labissiere was the 28th pick in the same draft, and he showed promise at the end of his rookie year. But the Kings needed to see continued growth from Skal along with Willie Cauley-Stien. Both players showed flashes of great play but were not consistent enough to cement a long-term future in the NBA. They have to improve a lot to make a case to stay with the Kings. Or they could go the same route as Jason Thompson and Jimmer Fredette who have had great careers overseas.

Final thoughts on Vlade

Vlade has to prove he and his team can scout and pick talent, as well as make trades that will further improve the team. The Kings are still paying for their past mistakes of poor front-office decisions. But they have hired more people and qualified personnel to get management up to NBA levels.

Vlade, Vivek, and company have a plan that they are sticking with. Time is ticking for Vlade. Fans have waited long enough and deserve to see a team that can compete for a playoff spot. You cannot stay in rebuild mode forever!