Sacramento Kings: Vlade Divac and the Problem with Gambling

Over the last four years, Sacramento Kings GM Vlade Divac has made it clear he is willing to gamble on his instincts. But is this the path to long-term success?

In the four years since Vlade Divac was officially made the general manager of the Sacramento Kings, a lot of words have been used to describe both him and his tenure, not all of them printable in this space. However, there’s one that isn’t spoken as often, and it’s a word that is likely worth focusing on in order to project the shaky future of the Sacramento Kings: gambler.

Divac’s entire career as a general manager has been a series of gambles. Trading DeMarcus Cousins when he did and for the particular package he did it for was a massive risk that was largely derided at the time. Selecting Harry Giles in the 2017 NBA Draft with all of his health concerns was a risk. The choice to draft Marvin Bagley over Luka Doncic in the 2018 NBA Draft, bucking the traditional wisdom of almost all NBA outlets, was a massive gamble that could easily have gotten him fired if it fell flat. The trade for Harrison Barnes earlier this year was a risk.  Firing David Joerger to hire Luke Walton was an immense risk.

The list could go on and on for pages, but the point is clear: the only thing Vlade Divac has trusted since August 31, 2015 is his gut.  His natural leadership style is that of the gamble. There isn’t anything wrong with that in a vacuum. To be a successful NBA general manager, one needs the ability to trust your instincts and forge your own path in critical moments.

Fellow Gamblers

For example, Masai Ujiri, the GM for the Raptors, took a humongous risk last summer by trading away DeMar DeRozan, longtime Raptor and fan favorite, for Kawhi Leonard, a player who had indicated several times he would only resign with a Los Angeles team. The risk paid off, and the Raptors won the title in June. The Warriors firing Mark Jackson and replacing him with Steve Kerr was a huge gamble that also paid off with three titles in four seasons.

Here’s the difference, though: both the Raptors and Warriors examples came as a result of a calculated vision of what management wanted the team to be and were risks that the team had to take in order to get to that last level. Both moves were gambles, but they were educated, informed gambles. And neither Ujiri or Lacob/Meyers have made their careers by taking counter-intuitive moves.

Because here’s the issue with gambling as a constant in the NBA: just as in real life, eventually the house collects.

Looking back at the list of previous Divac gambles, the Kings fanbase had talked themselves into each and every one of them at one point or another. The Cousins trade started looking really good for the Kings once Buddy Hield started showing elite sharpshooting skills. Harry Giles started slowly working his way into the rotation last year. Bagley over Doncic was at least looking like a defensible decision. We had even talked ourselves into Walton’s coaching skills.

But also consider…

The book on the Cousins trade nearly reopened after the Buddy Hield contract negotiations turned ugly last month. With the recent news that the Kings would not be picking up Giles’ rookie option (for reasons that remain unknown), the choice to trade down from the tenth pick and select him, leaving Malik Monk, Donovan Mitchell, Bam Adebayo and John Collins all on the board. The Kings have never looked the same since the trade for Barnes. Doncic has been dazzling in Dallas.  Luke Walton’s strategies and rotations have thus far looked unimpressive as the Kings have stumbled to a 2-5 start to the season. As well, Walton’s legal issues loom in the background, threatening to blow this already tenuous season into shreds.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, making a series of risks is not the same as having a coherent, tangible plan.  And without a coherent, tangible plan, it becomes difficult to even project how the Kings will fare from season to season, or even game to game. The team has largely looked disastrous for the first five games of the year before a thrilling victory against the Jazz on Friday night, where hard defense was played and the offense was geared towards the strength of the players. Who knows which team will show up next.

Whether Vlade is considered a genius or a pariah to the Kings fanbase is largely dependent on what week you ask them. For better or for worse, it’s likely we will never be entirely clear which is more true. But that’s just the inherent gamble to Divac’s management style. And he wouldn’t have it any other way.