3 Biggest Sacramento Kings draft fails of the last 15 years
By Logan Struck
1. 2012 – Thomas Robinson, Pick 5
After a breakout Junior year at the University of Kansas, Thomas Robinson’s draft stock skyrocketed. A 6’10” power forward with a 7’1″ wingspan, Robinson possessed the physical traits to be a top-five selection. Averaging 17.7 points and 11.9 rebounds per game, Robinson was a beast heading into the draft.
Robinson’s offensive tools did not translate to the NBA, as most of his points came from being a strong force in the paint in college. His rebounding ability was undoubtedly the most impressive part of his game. His athleticism at that size explains why he was a top-five worthy pick in the draft, but there were too many question marks around his offensive tools and defensive consistency to take a chance on him.
The Kings were trying to find their franchise frontcourt, pairing Robinson next to Demarcus Cousins, but he did not pan out as they would have hoped. Robinson only played 51 games for Sacramento, averaging 4.8 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, before getting traded to the Houston Rockets at the trade deadline in exchange for Patrick Patterson.
Besides failing to play a whole season in Sacramento, this was a draft failure because of the players the Kings passed on. Let’s look at the next five picks from this draft: Damian Lillard, Harrison Barnes, Terrence Ross, Andre Drummond, and Austin Rivers. Granted they are not all superstar names, but they all panned out better than Thomas Robinson. Two second-round guys in this draft were Draymond Green at pick 35 and Khris Middleton at pick 39.
Thomas Robinson was a bust in a draft class where four of the top-ten picks became All-Stars. This was the most unfortunate draft moment for the Sacramento Kings in the last 15 years.
