Luke Walton stays as Kings enter next phase
By some measures, the Kings have failed over the first half of the season the same way they’ve failed for the past 14 years.
They failed to maintain a winning record, failed to establish a clear path to the playoffs and failed to win a single game for the better part of three long, difficult weeks in February. A nine-game losing streak set off alarm bells in Sacramento with increasing calls for coach Luke Walton to be fired as the All-star break approached, but first-year general manager Monte Mcnair was eyeing other measures of success from the start.
A league source told The Sacramento Bee that Walton’s job is safe for now as the Kings (1422) begin the second half against the Houston Rockets (11-23) on Thursday night at Golden 1 Center. Walton karate chopped a clipboard and swatted a water bottle off the scorer’s table as frustrations mounted over the first 36 games, but these struggles were expected and Walton led his team through the darkest days without losing the locker room.
Sources told The Bee before the All-star break Walton was confident he would keep his job based on the plan Mcnair laid out for owner Vivek Ranadivé when he was hired in September. Mcnair has said very little about his plans publicly, but in late November sources with knowledge of the situation began to lay out a clear vision for Mcnair’s first season in Sacramento. According to a recent report from The Athletic, this season was viewed internally as a “gap year.”
For months sources have told The Bee that Mcnair planned to reshape his roster over the next two to four years in a soft rebuild around De’aaron Fox, the dynamic 23-year-old point guard who signed a max extension prior to the season. In the meantime, Mcnair created over $40 million in future salary cap flexibility, positioned his team to be a player in the trade market and charted
a course that would likely lead to a top pick in a loaded 2021 NBA draft. Rather than spending big in free agency, the Kings waited out the market to bring in the likes of Hassan Whiteside and Glenn Robinson III on one-year minimum deals, a process largely overseen by assistant general manager Wes Wilcox, sources said.
The decision to let Bogdan Bogdanovic sign with the Atlanta Hawks as a restricted free agent was difficult, but it was consistent with Mcnair's goal of maintaining financial flexibility. It also signaled the end of the failed winnow approach that guided former general manager Vlade Divac's decisions as he tried so desperately to bring winning basketball back to Sacramento.
Instead, the Kings would reduce the role of Nemanja Bjelica, prioritize the development of Marvin Bagley III, start Buddy Hield in hopes of improving his trade value and wait for the opportunity to draft another young star on an affordable rookie deal. By this measure, the season has been something of a success.
Tankathon.com currently predicts the Kings will pick fifth in the upcoming draft. The projected pick is Jonathan Kuminga, an 18-year-old small forward who was one of the stars on the G League Elite team. In that range, based on current projections, the Kings could also have a chance to draft Duke's Jalen Johnson or Florida State's Scottie Barnes.
Fox has taken another step toward stardom, improving his averages to career highs of 23.0 points and 7.6 assists. His 67.2% free-throw shooting is a concern, but the Kings will be more concerned with getting him help on defense so he doesn't have to expend so much energy at both ends of the floor.
Bagley has made significant strides, improving his 3-point shooting to 37% while becoming a more willing passer and a more capable defender. Bagley still has a ways to go to reach his potential as a former No. 2 draft pick, but the growth in his game and improving chemistry with Fox suggest he could still be a long-term fit for the Kings.
Tyrese Haliburton, the No. 12 pick in November's draft, has been a revelation, averaging 13.2 points, 5.4 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals to establish himself as a leading candidate for Rookie of the Year. Haliburton has demonstrated uncommon poise for a rookie, shooting 43.3% from beyond the arc while collecting 161 assists with just 46 turnovers in 903 minutes.
Harrison Barnes is having one of the best years of his career, averaging 16.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists while shooting 49.2% from the field and 39.2% from 3-point range. Richaun Holmes has continued to blossom, averaging career highs of 13 points and 8.3 rebounds while shooting 65.1% from the field and 80.6% at the freethrow line. Hield has struggled, shooting a career-low 39.1% from the field and 37.8% from beyond the arc, but he still provides floor spacing as one of the NBA'S most prolific 3-point shooters.
Still, the Kings are woefully lacking in terms of defense and depth, two areas Mcnair will look to address between now and the start of the 2021-22 season. Some big decisions will be made in the coming weeks as the March 25 trade deadline approaches. Barnes is a hot commodity on the trade market. Bjelica is also drawing interest from multiple teams, sources said.
The Kings are one of the few teams viewed as a seller leading up to the trade deadline. Mcnair might try to leverage that position to extract multiple draft picks and young players in a deal for Barnes, but he doesn't have to make a move unless he is satisfied with the return.
The Kings will match the longest postseason drought in NBA history if they fail to make an improbable run to the playoffs over the second half of the season, but this time they plan to fail forward.