The Kings Could Use Offseason To Gain 2023 Playoff Momentum

Patience is a term often mentioned, but rarely used, by NBA decision makers when a team is looking to switch gears.

Sometimes, a team will go into a rebuild, announcing its plans of acquiring players through the draft and improving from within, only to bail on that plan two years later in order to play competitive basketball. This rarely works, but is nevertheless a frequent occurrence.

Then there are the teams that actually put forward a valid attempt at living up to their plan of applying a slow-burn approach to team building. They spend years hoarding draft picks, take chances with undervalued young players, and hope to have enough talent to eventually make a competitive push forward. The Oklahoma City Thunder literally drafted future MVPs back-to-back-to-back with Kevin Durant (2007), Russell Westbrook (2008), and James Harden (2009), which led to a Finals appearance in 2012.

Finally, a team might be stuck in a perpetual process cycle, taking one step forward, two back, until the fan base lose interest, thus necessitating dramatic changes. And if the Sacramento Kings spring to mind on this one, you would be right.

The big push

The Kings recently made one of those drastic changes, fully forgoing patience in order to build a competitive window now. However, Sacramento differs from teams that abandoned their rebuild, seeing as they never wanted that initial patience to begin with.

For years, chairman Vivek Ranadive has wanted to field a playoff team and has reached the point of near-desperation to get one. He’s hired, and fired, multiple executives and coaches, hoping the formula for a winning team would reveal itself in the midst of his self-created chaos.

During last month’s trade deadline, the Kings made a big competitive push, trading for All-Star big man Domantas Sabonis, relinquishing a haul – which included fan favorite Tyrese Haliburton – to the Pacers.

On the surface, the move appeared as another transaction drenched in desperation, ultimately setting the Kings back years, and alienating the fan base while doing so. And in fairness, that risk remains. In the 11 games Sabonis has played since arriving in Sacramento, the Kings have won just four.

That said, there might be some reason for optimism.

Looming upside

The Kings have may stumbled upon something intriguing for the immediate future, following the conclusion of this season.

Needless to say, mid-season acquisitions are thrown into the fire with a new team immediately, having no training camp or playbook experience to fall back on. Sabonis, whose game is built on intelligence, passing angles and awareness, is more likely to have a more potent effect when he understands his teammates and their respective skills. In short, Sabonis might simply be flat-out better for the Kings next season than he is now.

Additionally – and this is the key that could unlock the Kings from almost two decades of irrelevance – Sabonis was acquired while on a contract that severely under-compensates his services financially. The 6’11 do-it-all big man is earning just $18.5 million next season.

Fellow starter Harrison Barnes also sits at a highly reasonable $18.3 million for 2022-2023, with Richaun Holmes, one of the most effective scoring centers in the league, earning just $11.2 million. Sacramento’s top-earner, De’Aaron Fox, checks in at $30.3 million, which isn’t a bad number by any means, especially if he returns to the form he was in during the 2020-2021 season, averaging over 25 points and seven assists per game.

The Kings, as it stands, have not just foursome of established talent, but they also have financially flexibility due to the modest compensation level of their current players. They will have Davion Mitchell, their current prized rookie, enter his second season playing on a rookie contract as well.

The 2o22 summer

Despite the above financial benefits, The Kings shouldn’t operate as a team under the cap. In fact, operating as an over-the-cap team like the Bulls did in the summer of 2021 would be far more beneficial. But it’s never a bad thing to have multiple players on deals that are generally considered below market value, as that provides a cushion before bumping up against the luxury tax line.

Sacramento has clearly decided to go all-in, meaning they can go about their summer in a few creative ways. They could sign-and-trade restricted free agent Donte DiVicenzo, taking back a more experienced player, and still have the use of the full non-tax MLE, worth approximately $10.2 million as a starting salary. Alternatively, they could hang onto DiVicenzo if they believe he’s close to entering his prime, which at 25 years of age, isn’t necessarily an outlandish thought.

If the Kings then used the non-tax MLE on a player with shooting capabilities, such as Otto Porter Jr or Malik Monk, that suddenly begins to look like a Kings team that could make a push towards the 2023 playoffs.

The plan is by no means flawless, and the Kings will have give up hope for this season, as they’re projected to finish far outside the playoffs. But that doesn’t mean their overall plan is necessarily bad. It might not work out – things have a tendency to not work out for Sacramento – but the idea of building a roster where talent outweighs contractual compensation is far from a bad one.