It wasn't that long ago when it was being reported that the overhauled Kings' front office had no interest in offering LaVine an extension. After being the only starter with consistent play so far in the preseason, that tune might be changing a bit, by necessity more than anything else.
When the trade that sent De'Aaron Fox to the Spurs and brought LaVine to the Kings happened, it was a much different front office. It was apparently owner Vivek Ranadive who pushed for the deal, which former general manager Monte McNair may not have wanted.
That's the past. Now, Scott Perry and BJ Armstrong are in charge in Sactown, neither of whom are reputedly big fans of LaVine's game. As such, it would be surprising if they wanted to offer the All-Star guard an extension, given how much money he's currently making.
Sam Amick pointed this out on an episode of the The Zach Lowe Show, saying that the Kings' had no interest in extending LaVine. Zach Lowe concurred with his assessment. The new front office was cited as the reason for this, though the conversation does seem dated, now.
Not so fast on Zach LaVine
That was three weeks ago and a few things have changed since then, namely training camp and the preseason. LaVine found a role as team leader and mentor in training camp to a group of Sacramento rookies who are absolutely killing it in the preseason so far and will only get better.
On top of that, LaVine has been all over the preseason. In four games, he has 63 points, 13 rebounds, 15 assists, and four steals. Obviously, his scoring is the main thing he's bringing to the game, but he's also the only starter who is reliably scoring in double digits.
Plus, Ranadive is still the owner of the Kings, and apparently the leading force behind bringing both DeRozan and LaVine in. Unless he changes his mind, it's unlikely that Zach LaVine is going anywhere anytime soon. If Vivek has LaVine's back, Zach will be a King as long as he wants to be one.
Perry and Armstrong may have to suck it up, and get over their problems with LaVine. Rather than cutting him down, the move is to empower him in his role as leader and mentor. Putting personal feelings ahead of sound decisions is bad business, particularly with a player like LaVine.