For the better part of two decades, the Kings could not find the playoffs with a flashlight, a map, and a five-day head start. There wasn't much to be excited about in Sacramento when it came to the NBA.
Well, outside of the DeMarcus Cousins era. There was real potential in those years.
Then, the all-too-brief Beam Team era arrived. With Mike Brown as head coach, De'Aaron Fox at point guard, and Domantas Sabonis at center, the Kings saw the post-season in 2023, ending their 16-year playoff drought.
That felt like it should have been the beginning of something big for the franchise. Instead, everything changed with the departures of De'Aaron Fox, Monte McNair, and Mike Brown. The blame for those changes has to belong to the entire front office.
The Kings' problems start at the top
In the world of basketball, the front office has become a somewhat nebulous term. It feels like a group of nameless, faceless executive who know nothing about basketball making arbitrary decisions that make no sense. If you're name is Nico Harrison, that description may be apt.
The front office team is expansive. It includes the owners, team president/CEO, general manager, assistant general manager, and director of player personnel.
In addition to that, the front office is also home to the salary cap management team, the scouting department, and the analytics department. All of that is then usually separated into basketball operations and business operations.
For the Kings, the only visible members of the front office to leave since the sudden end of the Beam Team era were general manager Monte McNair and assistant general manager Wes Wilcox. Everyone else remains the same.
A Kings' rebuild has to start in the front office
Over the past decade or so, the Kings' roster and the coaching staff have been in constant flux. Yet, the front office has remained relatively stable. Given the Kings' overall lack of success, that raises significant questions about where this problems really are.
Changing coaches and trading for new players is pointless if the front office does not have clear motivation and direction, aka a plan. The Kings' front office doesn't seem to have any of that.
At this point, a Kings' rebuild that does not include significant front office changes in roles like president/CEO and director of player personnel is utterly pointless. The same thing will just keep happening on the court, and that benefits no one.