What has to happen to move forward next year

[miltonap]

We have one plus defender and Mike Brown didn't play him in the biggest game of the season... and we lost with Steph Curry torching us for 50 points. This seems like a pretty easy pairing of problem and solution to me. Relying on T. Davis to give us a huge lift two games in a row was fool's gold. The Warriors obliterated him with screens and Steph got every shot he wanted. As for Red Velvet, leaning on Kevin and Keegan as floor spacers for Fox and Domas had been working like gangbusters all year except for the last week of the season and that GS series when Kevin had a very poorly timed shooting slump. Shooters go through stretches where they miss more than they make -- even Steph does. Kevin is still an essential part of the winning formula.

I think this is an easy call: keep all 4 of our guards because each of them fulfills a very important role. Fox is our primary scorer. Monk is our instant offense 6th man. Huerter is our catch and shoot floor spacer and Davion is our designated defender. We're no longer in talent acquisition mode hoping we can find a coach who will mold that talent into a team -- we are a team already and a damn good one. We shouldn't be letting anyone leave unless there's a clear upgrade to be made at the same position. With the exception of a few star bigs and forwards, this is still a guard oriented league and our depth at guard is a big part of why we were so competitive this season. Fox showed big progress as a defender under Mike Brown's leadership but we can't throw him out there and ask him to expend max energy on both ends of the floor all night.

If we do move Davion in a trade for an upgrade somewhere else, now we need to find another plus defender just to maintain our status quo as a very bad defensive team. We're swimming uphill as it is trying to get better on the defensive side of the floor. I don't think we can afford to take even a small step backward in our defensive-minded personnel.

Honestly Davion just needs to improve his shot.

He's a hard worker, I think he could get it done.

I don't see Huerter or Monk getting leagues better on defense but what if Davion fixes his shot?

He just needs to get it done, it would help the team a lot and if he does I don't think you can really trade him

 

[kingsboi]

Honestly Davion just needs to improve his shot.

He's a hard worker, I think he could get it done.

I don't see Huerter or Monk getting leagues better on defense but what if Davion fixes his shot?

He just needs to get it done, it would help the team a lot and if he does I don't think you can really trade him

No question. A work ethic of his caliber is guaranteed to keep him in the league for at least a decade if not more. His conditioning is exceptional, he was chasing Curry around the perimeter without breathing heavy, hands on hips. He's shown that he can hit that mid-range shot and he has quick burst to the hoop too. I think being patient with some of our prospects is the proper approach to take here because I think it will pay off.

 

[sactowndog]

The glaring issue with Davion is how do you get him on the floor? Fox's 34-38 MPG aren't going anywhere. We may have really found something with Monk in the playoffs, who was one of the main reasons we pushed the series to 7 games. Huerter had a horrible playoffs, but he took a serious leap in the regular season and showed tremendous chemistry off of Domas and playing the C&S spacer roll to perfection with Foxy.

And I don't think Davion could have played better defense on Steph, but we still took him off the floor because of his offensive limitations. Now maybe that was a real mistake, but coach tapped T.DAVIS of all people to try and find an offensive spark and put a bit more size on the floor.

I think the Kings do have to start thinking about how to allocate their minutes and resources a little more effectively. Davion as a 10-15 MPG back-up is certainly an amazing luxury to have, but is there some deal out there that can parlay him into a future wing that can start next to Keegan? Or even a wing back-up that could be 20+ MPG.

Honestly, I'm not sure what the answer is. All 3 of Huerter/Davion/Monk staked a real claim to be a running mate next to Fox in the long-term. I think that's something Monte will really have to delve deep into this off-season on which he considers to be a 3+ year core piece next to Fox/Domas/Keegan. My bet would be on Monk, especially taking his tremendous playoff series into consideration. I don't think it's particularly effective to keep playing the hot-hand approach with all 3 and just play the guy who's playing well.

I don’t think you can play Fox and Monk in the back court together size wise and win a Championship.

 

[ockingsfan]

I think there are a few things we should do to take the next step to be contenders this summer and I think these are realistic outcomes:

1) Sign Naz Reid to a free agent contract $56-60mil/ 4 year deal to be your starting PF, providing defense, length and shooting
2) Bring Sasha over on a $18 mil/ 3 year deal to be your stretch 4/3
3) Re-sign Trey Lyles to a team friendly deal $18 mil/3 year to be backup center/PF
4) Draft a wing at #24 or BPA, Kris Murray or Max Lewis
5) Promote Queta and Keon Ellis to the big squad to fill out the roster on min deals

Our line up going into next year:

PF: Naz Reid / Sasha
SF: Keegan Murray / Kris Murray or Max Lewis / Edwards
C: Domantas Sabonis / Lyles / Queta
SG: Kevin Huerter / Monk / Ellis
PG: D'Aaron Fox / Mitchell

 

[ShastaKingsFan]

I don’t think you can play Fox and Monk in the back court together size wise and win a Championship.

You think Kevin Huerter's height is really a significant factor in how he plays?

 

[sactowndog]

You think Kevin Huerter's height is really a significant factor in how he plays?

I think it matters defensively

 

[SacTownKid]

I don’t think you can play Fox and Monk in the back court together size wise and win a Championship.

I'm sketchy on it, but we've seen time and time again Fox can guard up. Way up sometimes. I still don't really know a similar situation that got rings other than maybe Thomas and Dumars? Dumars was a pretty thick dude though and they had an insane defensive team to make up for the size issues.

 

[SacTownKid]

I think there are a few things we should do to take the next step to be contenders this summer and I think these are realistic outcomes:

1) Sign Naz Reid to a free agent contract $56-60mil/ 4 year deal to be your starting PF, providing defense, length and shooting
2) Bring Sasha over on a $18 mil/ 3 year deal to be your stretch 4/3
3) Re-sign Trey Lyles to a team friendly deal $18 mil/3 year to be backup center/PF
4) Draft a wing at #24 or BPA, Kris Murray or Max Lewis
5) Promote Queta and Keon Ellis to the big squad to fill out the roster on min deals

Our line up going into next year:

PF: Naz Reid / Sasha
SF: Keegan Murray / Kris Murray or Max Lewis / Edwards
C: Domantas Sabonis / Lyles / Queta
SG: Kevin Huerter / Monk / Ellis
PG: D'Aaron Fox / Mitchell

I've liked Naz since college but that's a pretty big gamble. I think it can pay off if you need scoring, the Kings do and I do think Naz has a chance to really produce in more minutes but that's a gamble contract right there.

 

[ockingsfan]

I've liked Naz since college but that's a pretty big gamble. I think it can pay off if you need scoring, the Kings do and I do think Naz has a chance to really produce in more minutes but that's a gamble contract right there.

Yes, a Naz Reid signing would be a big gamble. We'd be hoping his production would translate on starter minutes.

Monte can either play it safe (re-sign HB) or go for broke (sign Naz Reid) and try to fill in the holes in the Kings starting 5 (ie. defense, size and length).

I think the chances of the Kings making a big jump next year is greater if we bring in a player that can possibly address our glaring holes of defense, size, and length. Pluz Naz is younger and fits the timeline of our core better than the vet HB.

 

[Telemachus]

Yes, a Naz Reid signing would be a big gamble. We'd be hoping his production would translate on starter minutes.

Monte can either play it safe (re-sign HB) or go for broke (sign Naz Reid) and try to fill in the holes in the Kings starting 5 (ie. defense, size and length).

I think the chances of the Kings making a big jump next year is greater if we bring in a player that can possibly address our glaring holes of defense, size, and length. Pluz Naz is younger and fits the timeline of our core better than the vet HB.

I like Naz Reid, but that type of contract would be a huge risk. This is a guy who has never averaged 20 minutes a games in 4 years. That doesn't mean he won't continue to produce at the same level for 30 minutes a game. However, I have seen dozens of players who failed to do so. By all means, the Kings should try to sign him. If it takes that big of a contract, then let some other team take the risk.

 

[funkykingston]

I can go either way on the Kings re-signing HB, but I'm puzzled by all the talk of Naz Reid.

This was the first season he played any minutes at PF and it still only amounted to 16% of his time on the floor. 84% of the time he was still playing center. He also hasn't really shown himself to be all that switchable on defense like a Bam or Draymond.

I think the idea that he would come over to the Kings and start next to Domas and improve the team defense is a stretch at best.

Finch experimented with playing Reid and KAT together last preseason but didn't do it when the games counted. If that pairing of two bigs didn't work when one of them is more of a finesse player who likes shooting from outside and playing more like a wing to the point that the Wolves gave up a huge haul to get Gobert to start at center, then I'm not sure how it would work better with Sabonis.

Reid has killed the Kings, and he's a very effective offensive center. I'm just not sure where the idea came from that he's also a defensive stopper or should be a starting PF/wing on a playoff team.

 

[Telemachus]

I can go either way on the Kings re-signing HB, but I'm puzzled by all the talk of Naz Reid.

This was the first season he played any minutes at PF and it still only amounted to 16% of his time on the floor. 84% of the time he was still playing center. He also hasn't really shown himself to be all that switchable on defense like a Bam or Draymond.

I think the idea that he would come over to the Kings and start next to Domas and improve the team defense is a stretch at best.

Finch experimented with playing Reid and KAT together last preseason but didn't do it when the games counted. If that pairing of two bigs didn't work when one of them is more of a finesse player who likes shooting from outside and playing more like a wing to the point that the Wolves gave up a huge haul to get Gobert to start at center, then I'm not sure how it would work better with Sabonis.

Reid has killed the Kings, and he's a very effective offensive center. I'm just not sure where the idea came from that he's also a defensive stopper.

I would look for him to play off the bench at the 4/5 for the Kings. I would hope he shows he can play a bigger role down the line. If not, he would be a big upgrade over Metu.
He only made $1.9 million last season. I highly doubt he is jumping to $10-12 million.

 

[funkykingston]

I would look for him to play off the bench at the 4/5 for the Kings. I would hope he shows he can play a bigger role down the line. If not, he would be a big upgrade over Metu.
He only made $1.9 million last season. I highly doubt he is jumping to $10-12 million.

If the Kings can move Holmes and sign Reid for slightly less, that's a definite improvement. Add in a big body C for certain matchups (Queta? Maybe re-sign Len?) then you have improved a weak spot from last season. And if Reid can give quality minutes with Domas, that's a bonus.

But the idea of giving Reid 15-18 million per year with the idea that he's penciled in to start next to Sabonis makes no sense to me.

 

[SacTownKid]

I can go either way on the Kings re-signing HB, but I'm puzzled by all the talk of Naz Reid.

This was the first season he played any minutes at PF and it still only amounted to 16% of his time on the floor. 84% of the time he was still playing center. He also hasn't really shown himself to be all that switchable on defense like a Bam or Draymond.

I think the idea that he would come over to the Kings and start next to Domas and improve the team defense is a stretch at best.

Finch experimented with playing Reid and KAT together last preseason but didn't do it when the games counted. If that pairing of two bigs didn't work when one of them is more of a finesse player who likes shooting from outside and playing more like a wing to the point that the Wolves gave up a huge haul to get Gobert to start at center, then I'm not sure how it would work better with Sabonis.

Reid has killed the Kings, and he's a very effective offensive center. I'm just not sure where the idea came from that he's also a defensive stopper or should be a starting PF/wing on a playoff team.

Naz is a max payout type player. If his per minute productivity translates then oh boy, you've got a steal depending on the deal. Reid was an under the radar type for a few seasons but the Wolves didn't look to trade him. Last season the hype kind of faded as one would expect since his role didn't increase. Now we see what happens.

 

[SacTownKid]

I would look for him to play off the bench at the 4/5 for the Kings. I would hope he shows he can play a bigger role down the line. If not, he would be a big upgrade over Metu.
He only made $1.9 million last season. I highly doubt he is jumping to $10-12 million.

I think it was just the season before this last one though that had him rated on the "steal" list which is also what made him an impossible trade candidate since as you pointed to, his deal was so small. The MLE is reasonable considering the types that typically get that pay grade. Beyond that? Not sure. It could be just fine or really bad. Yeah, for the Kings, I'm not sure about it. Is a bench big worth full MLE? It's very close and there's the potential he could win a starting spot. I still believe the Kings need a punch in their top 3-4 option range, not the bench.

 

[macadocious]

Hey @Capt. Factorial if the Kings were to give the entirety of the BAE to Vezenkov, that limits them to basically a 2 year 9.1MM contract.

Is he a UFA after those 2 years?

If so do they have bird rights, or early bird rights?

I’ll take your answer off the air.

 

[Capt. Factorial]

Hey @Capt. Factorial if the Kings were to give the entirety of the BAE to Vezenkov, that limits them to basically a 2 year 9.1MM contract.

Is he a UFA after those 2 years?

If so do they have bird rights, or early bird rights?

I’ll take your answer off the air.

Under that circumstance, because the team had control of him for two years, they would have Early Bird Rights, but not Full Bird Rights.

However, he would be a RFA because that is based on years of NBA service (as opposed to say years from the draft the player was selected in).

The Early Bird rights would allow us to start a contract in his third year at the estimated average salary, which is a bit more than the MLE, so we could match any QO - even by a team with cap space, because the Gilbert Arenas provision would limit the first year of any QO to the MLE.

 

[twslam07]

If we do end up making a trade for Anunoby (Holmes, Mitchell, #24, & 2026-2028 SAC 1st for Anunoby), we’d still have ~$17.5 mil in cap space (assuming we waive Dozier and keep Lyles’ cap hold) with the following players under contract…

PG - Fox / Monk
SG - Huerter
SF - Murray / Edwards
PF - Anunoby / Lyles
C - Sabonis

I’m wondering if it makes sense to target a guy like Bruce Brown who gives us an excellent guard/wing defender who can also handle the ball, pass, provide some scoring (not to mention his shooting seems to be improving), & rebound. He’s also on the same timeline as our core.

I actually see him as a player who could replace Huerter in the starting lineup down the road given his defense, rebounding, secondary & ballhandling/playmaking. It all depends on if he can become a reliable 3PT shooter to space the floor for Fox/Sabonis. If he does, I don’t see why it wouldn’t make sense to have him take the starting gig. In the meantime, you now have two elite/great defenders who can guard many positions which should really help elevate the teams defense while still having great spacing allowing our offense to remain in the top tier.

On top of adding Brown with our cap space, you’d still have #38 & #54, our room exception ($7,609,000), and the ability to bring back Queta and Ellis…

PG - Fox / Monk / Ellis
SG - Huerter / Brown
SF - Murray / Edwards
PF - Anunoby / Lyles
C - Sabonis / Queta
Picks - #38 / #54
Exceptions - Room

And the minute distribution could look something like…

PG - Fox (34) / Monk (14)
SG - Huerter (28) / Monk (12) / Brown (8)
SF - Murray (30) / Brown (18)
PF - Anunoby (30) / Lyles (18)
C - Sabonis (34) / Lyles (8) / FA C (6)

Fox = 34 min
Sabonis = 34 min
Murray = 30 min
Anunoby = 30 min
Huerter = 28 min
Monk = 26 min
Brown = 26 min
Lyles = 26 min
FA C = 6 min

 

[macadocious]

Under that circumstance, because the team had control of him for two years, they would have Early Bird Rights, but not Full Bird Rights.

However, he would be a RFA because that is based on years of NBA service (as opposed to say years from the draft the player was selected in).

The Early Bird rights would allow us to start a contract in his third year at the estimated average salary, which is a bit more than the MLE, so we could match any QO - even by a team with cap space, because the Gilbert Arenas provision would limit the first year of any QO to the MLE.

Great, we should do that.

 

[ockingsfan]

I would look for him to play off the bench at the 4/5 for the Kings. I would hope he shows he can play a bigger role down the line. If not, he would be a big upgrade over Metu.
He only made $1.9 million last season. I highly doubt he is jumping to $10-12 million.

If we can sign Naz Reid for less than $10-12 mil per, I think that would be a steal, that's less than what we had to pay Richaun Holmes ($12.5 mil) to stay.

 

[funkykingston]

If we can sign Naz Reid for less than $10-12 mil per, I think that would be a steal, that's less than what we had to pay Richaun Holmes ($12.5 mil) to stay.

True. And the cap has (I believe) increased a bit since then. But it's also worth noting that at the time, Richaun was signed to be the starting center for the Kings.

Domas will likely get a max or near max extension soon and that's a ton of money to tie up in one position, even if backup C was a glaring weakness last season.

I think it goes back to whether Reid can successfully play alongside Sabonis for stretches. If so, that might be worth pursuing. If not, then it's a tougher pill to swallow, especially if it limits the ability to improve the team in other areas.

 

[ockingsfan]

True. And the cap has (I believe) increased a bit since then. But it's also worth noting that at the time, Richaun was signed to be the starting center for the Kings.

Domas will likely get a max or near max extension soon and that's a ton of money to tie up in one position, even if backup C was a glaring weakness last season.

I think it goes back to whether Reid can successfully play alongside Sabonis for stretches. If so, that might be worth pursuing. If not, then it's a tougher pill to swallow, especially if it limits the ability to improve the team in other areas.

Yes, the premise to sign Naz Reid would be that he would be able to play next to Sabonis at PF. I would only sign him to that large of a contract if Monte believes he can start next to Sabonis. Otherwise, it's too much for a backup big.

When KAT went out with his injuries, Naz played pretty well next to Gobert, I would hope that he could play with Sabonis and provide some size and length and defense next to him.

 

[macadocious]

Teams getting expensive.

One route to go

 

[sactowndog]

Teams getting expensive.

One route to go

View attachment 11964

yes why I want to keep 24. So many possible options for a 3 and D players who would be cost controlled.

 

[See_Hanks]

Honestly Davion just needs to improve his shot.

He's a hard worker, I think he could get it done.

I don't see Huerter or Monk getting leagues better on defense but what if Davion fixes his shot?

He just needs to get it done, it would help the team a lot and if he does I don't think you can really trade him

We had the issue with the Webber era Kings and defense. Nobody on the Kings starting lineup was a top defender except Christie. But as a team we were good.. REALLY good. Like first in the league for opponent FG %. Sure we allowed a lot of points, but it was just because of how fast paced our offense was for that time, but team defense we were the best. I don't think these Kings will be the best in the league as a team, but we can improve as a team.

What is funny about the current team is that at home we are pretty much bottom 5 in all defensive categories, but on the road we were almost in the middle in regards to team defense. We were an average defensive team when playing on the road.

At home in terms of offense we were amazing. Most points and the next closest team was 3 points per game under us. We were top 5 in pretty much every offensive category at home.

Offense on the road we were 2nd in points behind Golden State, but all other offensive %s and categories we were about middle of the pack. Top middle, but still closer to the middle than at the top. So we were not as good on offense on the road, but we were miles ahead defensively in terms of almost every category. Now if we can play that way defensively at home we would be the best team in the league.

 

[SacTownKid]

We had the issue with the Webber era Kings and defense. Nobody on the Kings starting lineup was a top defender except Christie. But as a team we were good.. REALLY good. Like first in the league for opponent FG %. Sure we allowed a lot of points, but it was just because of how fast paced our offense was for that time, but team defense we were the best. I don't think these Kings will be the best in the league as a team, but we can improve as a team.

What is funny about the current team is that at home we are pretty much bottom 5 in all defensive categories, but on the road we were almost in the middle in regards to team defense. We were an average defensive team when playing on the road.

At home in terms of offense we were amazing. Most points and the next closest team was 3 points per game under us. We were top 5 in pretty much every offensive category at home.

Offense on the road we were 2nd in points behind Golden State, but all other offensive %s and categories we were about middle of the pack. Top middle, but still closer to the middle than at the top. So we were not as good on offense on the road, but we were miles ahead defensively in terms of almost every category. Now if we can play that way defensively at home we would be the best team in the league.

Yeah, I think this team if in that Nash era Suns range of 15-17 in net rating and they'll be fine.

For that Webber team, Vlade was super underrated on defense. He turned flopping into an art but was definitely more than that.

 

[serbiangoat]

Would the Kings trade for Duncan Robinsons terrible contract if the Kings sent back Holmes and got this year Miami 1st round pick or Jovic (or both) in return?

 

[Tetsujin]

Yeah, I think this team if in that Nash era Suns range of 15-17 in net rating and they'll be fine.

For that Webber team, Vlade was super underrated on defense. He turned flopping into an art but was definitely more than that.

Yeah, I think this team showed itself to be a better defensive team than the overall regular season numbers indicated in the postseason. They weren’t necessarily the Miami Heat out there but having a couple of strong point of attack defenders in Davion and Fox and an improving help defender in Murray all under the tutelage of one of the better defensive minds in the league makes it hard for the Kings to be terrible on that end of the floor.

Sure, the enduring image of the Kings defense is that Steph game 7 performance but pretty much every single other Warrior was in hell that game and it was the Kings forgetting how to score in the second half that cost them the game more than any defensive miscue in particular.

 

[Folsomkingsfan]

Would the Kings trade for Duncan Robinsons terrible contract if the Kings sent back Holmes and got this year Miami 1st round pick or Jovic (or both) in return?

I like Duncan Robinson. The Heat cut his minutes last season because Caleb Martin and Max Strus fit the team better, but this postseason showed a lot of why he got that contract. When hot, he is one of the best floor spacers in the game and he is really good at keeping the basketball moving. I think he'd be a great fit off the bench here.

 

[ESP47]

I like Duncan Robinson. The Heat cut his minutes last season because Caleb Martin and Max Strus fit the team better, but this postseason showed a lot of why he got that contract. When hot, he is one of the best floor spacers in the game and he is really good at keeping the basketball moving. I think he'd be a great fit off the bench here.

His production doesn't match his salary at all. That's a ton of of money to pay a guy to just play a Doug McDermott role off the bench.

Plus his 3pt% has been in a free fall for 4 years straight.