[Game] 05/82: Kings @ Bulls 29 OCT 2025, 5pm PT/8pm ET

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

His bluff was I'm leaving and it wasn't a bluff.

No, the bluff was, if you don't trade me where I want to go, I won't sign with them. Let that be the other team's problem. Or, let him leave, and free up that salary.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Ill boo him every chance I get. Very few star players leave like he did. It was a big f u to the city.

Lavine wants to be here. Ill be happy to get people around him that work

I've never cared about any place I've ever lived that much.

 

[SacTownKid]

No, the bluff was, if you don't trade me where I want to go, I won't sign with them. Let that be the other team's problem. Or, let him leave, and free up that salary.

Yeah, I'm sure that would have gone over quite well. I'm not sure what the bluff was to the Spurs but the team on the frying pan was Sacramento, not the Spurs. It's going to be the same thing with Domas at some point if it doesn't turn around. Just have to get something if the market just isn't there.

 

[iowamcnabb]

You definitely have more optimism than I do with Perry's plan. These guys had no chance of winning from the moment he signed Schroder and got rid of JVal. Just completely nonsensical from a guy who is supposed to be good at building a team. We're not in a good place to win or rebuild. We're officially in purgatory. You'll see what I'm talking about when we all start getting grandiose trade ideas around the trade deadline and wind up with zero FRPs and zero upside players for our efforts. There's just not much trade value on this team.

They couldn’t move off of the deals we had so they are “trying to win” but nothing is long term. Russ or Dennis arent anchor contracts that have destroyed our future. Deebo comes off the books trade or not next year. Top ten pick, Nique, Keegan, Keon etc is a start of a rebuild.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Yeah, I'm sure that would have gone over quite well. I'm not sure what the bluff was to the Spurs but the team on the frying pan was Sacramento, not the Spurs. It's going to be the same thing with Domas at some point if it doesn't turn around. Just have to get something if the market just isn't there.

Why do you have to get something?

 

[hrdboild]

Yeah, I'm sure that would have gone over quite well. I'm not sure what the bluff was to the Spurs but the team on the frying pan was Sacramento, not the Spurs. It's going to be the same thing with Domas at some point if it doesn't turn around. Just have to get something if the market just isn't there.

The irony here is that the Spurs gave him a huge extension and might not even want him anymore either.

 

[SacTownKid]

Why do you have to get something?

Because why not? Now, does that something have to be a lateral move like Fox to LaVine? No. You're usually better off not just letting players like that walk though. For a variety of reasons. Can't bench him so there's a huge chunk of development time accounted for basically a stopgap. Pick positioning. It's also probably best to limit those "gap years" to one.

 

[SacTownKid]

The irony here is that the Spurs gave him a huge extension and might not even want him anymore either.

And to that I say careful what you wish for De'Aaron haha. Get ready, when Fox comes back and the Spurs start rocking here will come the **** talking. Prep yourselves Kings fans.

 

[iowamcnabb]

Could get real awkward in San Antonio with that Fox situation. My guess is they just ride it out for 2 years because they have the money and then move him after next year. They have a real chance at a championship THIS year because Wemby might win MVP.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Because why not?

Because, if the organization had any backbone, then maybe they should have done it just to show that they weren't going to let themselves be punked by an agent.

... Can't bench him so there's a huge chunk of development time accounted for basically a stopgap...

I mean, you can bench him; he gets his money, either way.

 

[TheMobb]

How many teams does it have to happen to before you'll consider the possibility that maybe he's the reason the roster's unbalanced?

Now, in defense of LaVine, the fact that he unbalances teams isn't entirely a problem of his own making, rather it is the inevitable result of analytics weenies taking over basketball: when you decide that what players like LaVine can do is so valuable that you pay them like franchise guys, you can't balance a roster around them.

I agree he’s overpaid. Paying him like a #1 is what creates the roster imbalance, not his game.

 

[SacTownKid]

Because, if the organization had any backbone, then maybe they should have done it just to show that they weren't going to let themselves be punked by an agent.


I mean, you can bench him; he gets his money, either way.

As we saw with the Fox trade, there's more to it than that. The Kings ruined so many young players chances that they could hardly get any legit prospects to even come to Sacramento to workout for awhile. Agents unfortunately run a lot of stuff and if you get blackballed, you get blackballed. Don't need that while trying to rebuild since so much of that will be wheeling and dealing.

 

[ESP47]

DeMar was here before LaVine joined the team though. Is it fair to criticize him and Westbrook for being bad PF's just because they're the only 2 guards in our 6 guard rotation who can play PF?



My argument is that he's only able to do what he does on offense because of the way he plays defense. If everyone out there has a limited amount of gas in the tank and he uses 100% of his gas on offense and 0% of it on defense I should hope that he's putting up buckets. But it's a terrible way to go about getting them. We can substitute any other NBA SG in that spot and probably get 12-15 ppg out of them with less touches than LaVine is using so the question then becomes: is he costing us more than 10-15 ppg on defense? It is clear to me that he is. Especially when you factor in that the SG's he's taking minutes away from on this team are Keon Ellis, Nique Clifford, and Devin Carter.

And I really have to disagree with the idea that you can "balance" out a nothing defender by surrounding him with elite defenders. It's not that it isn't true -- it's that it's not practical. Nor is it fair to everyone else. And the negative effects down the line from that decision -- which for us includes limited opportunities for much better defenders like Carter and Ellis on the floor, less offensive touches for everyone else, holes in the roster for elite defensive bigs and forwards that we're going to have a hard time filling -- all point to one easy solution. Get rid of LaVine and build around a player who does more than just score the ball.

You're right, it's not their fault. It's Christie, Perry and Vivek's faults. Christie is in the unfortunate position where he is an unproven coach and the only thing that will cement his future as an NBA coach is winning. Unfortunately trying to win with this squad is the worst thing for the franchise moving forward. Only saving grace so far is they don't seem to be capable of it but lets not push back a year of development if we're going to lose anyway.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Could get real awkward in San Antonio with that Fox situation. My guess is they just ride it out for 2 years because they have the money and then move him after next year. They have a real chance at a championship THIS year because Wemby might win MVP.

People keep saying this, or something like this, and maybe it's true... Fox has only played with good teammates for two full seasons in his career, both seasons his team finished with a winning record and they made the playoffs once; I don't know why people seem to want to assume that the Spurs will stop being good when he's healthy?

 

[Rob-The-Great]

I've never cared about any place I've ever lived that much.

I mean.. good for you I guess. Sacramento fans generally care about they team and thus they city. If he didnt play in Sacramento why would I care about fox?

 

[TheMobb]

DeMar was here before LaVine joined the team though. Is it fair to criticize him and Westbrook for being bad PF's just because they're the only 2 guards in our 6 guard rotation who can play PF?



My argument is that he's only able to do what he does on offense because of the way he plays defense. If everyone out there has a limited amount of gas in the tank and he uses 100% of his gas on offense and 0% of it on defense I should hope that he's putting up buckets. But it's a terrible way to go about getting them. We can substitute any other NBA SG in that spot and probably get 12-15 ppg out of them with less touches than LaVine is using so the question then becomes: is he costing us more than 10-15 ppg on defense? It is clear to me that he is. Especially when you factor in that the SG's he's taking minutes away from on this team are Keon Ellis, Nique Clifford, and Devin Carter.

And I really have to disagree with the idea that you can "balance" out a nothing defender by surrounding him with elite defenders. It's not that it isn't true -- it's that it's not practical. Nor is it fair to everyone else. And the negative effects down the line from that decision -- which for us includes limited opportunities for much better defenders like Carter and Ellis on the floor, less offensive touches for everyone else, holes in the roster for elite defensive bigs and forwards that we're going to have a hard time filling -- all point to one easy solution. Get rid of LaVine and build around a player who does more than just score the ball.

I hear all of that and I get why it frustrates you. I just think LaVine’s elite scoring and spacing are rare skills that can be extremely valuable if paired with the right roster and system. I think in the right setting his flaws are manageable trade-offs for his scoring upside.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

As we saw with the Fox trade, there's more to it than that. The Kings ruined so many young players chances that they could hardly get any legit prospects to even come to Sacramento to workout for awhile. Agents unfortunately run a lot of stuff and if you get blackballed, you get blackballed. Don't need that while trying to rebuild since so much of that will be wheeling and dealing.

Haven't most of you guys spent the last eight months telling me how much you hate Klutch, and don't want to do business with them, and think that every player they represent are headcases/prima donnas? Why would you care if they blackballed the Kings?

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

I mean.. good for you I guess. Sacramento fans generally care about they team and thus they city. If he didnt play in Sacramento why would I care about fox?

'Cause he's good?

 

[Rob-The-Great]

People keep saying this, or something like this, and maybe it's true... Fox has only played with good teammates for two full seasons in his career, both seasons his team finished with a winning record and they made the playoffs once; I don't know why people seem to want to assume that the Spurs will stop being good when he's healthy?

Yet you dont give this same grace to Lavine.

He has empty stats while fox was just lonely.

Also that same good teammate was there the year he got traded, and he still requested a trade.

We got what we could for Fox and I'm not gonns blame the team for catering to there star only to get held hostage for a trade demand.

In the game of sports, witch in real world I could care less about, ill take loyalty to my team over a player.

In real world, I dont hate anyone. But sports world hes probably my least favorite player.

 

[SacTownKid]

Haven't most of you guys spent the last eight months telling me how much you hate Klutch, and don't want to do business with them, and think that every player they represent are headcases/prima donnas? Why would you care if they blackballed the Kings?

Hate and cutting off your nose to spite your face is something else entirely. You move on and if a franchise is smart they choose the path of least opposition from that point forward. Can't contend or have a tiny window because of age and cap bloat? Pretty clear unless you don't even care about contending. Like ever.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

The urgency to trade Fox was manufactured. They should have either held out for an offer that would have actually made them better, or called his bluff. Had the Kings been run well, they probably would have done either.


People still think that's a good idea?


What do you mean, if?

We couldn’t even get a hawks pick how do you trade your best player for absolute garbage

 

[iowamcnabb]

People keep saying this, or something like this, and maybe it's true... Fox has only played with good teammates for two full seasons in his career, both seasons his team finished with a winning record and they made the playoffs once; I don't know why people seem to want to assume that the Spurs will stop being good when he's healthy?

I’m not sure what you mean, I can only assume you have misinterpreted what I said.

I said that the Spurs will have a chance at a championship this year, Fox will be back with the team shortly so he’s obviously included in that. What i meant is that the Spurs appear to have drafted a better over all player in Harper and now they have 3 point guards on the roster, Fox is almost assuredly the odd man out given his age. I assumed, in the OP, that the Spurs would hang on to him for 2 years since they are championship ready and then trade him off for longer run way with Harper/Castle.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

His bluff was I'm leaving and it wasn't a bluff. C'mon, his agent put that together and Vivek bent right over haha. It was get that or get nothing. There was going to be some major collusion happening at some point that would have F'd the Kings. LaVine is here for another season after this at best. Could be worse. Everything after that was the WTF moment so far.

Trade him to Miami for JJJ and jovic

 

[Rob-The-Great]

'Cause he's good?

What? I mean vested care. Hes not that good for me to care if he wasn't on the kings. He has what 1 allstart rotation appearance?

 

[SacTownKid]

Trade him to Miami for JJJ and jovic

Was that trade even there? Fox was pretty clear about desires and yes, there were clearly other factors involved. And sorry, LaVine isn't garbage. Dude's a walking bucket. The scary thing is when this team pushes up to .500 and they let that murkiness walk them out farther into the darkness as a franchise. Yeah, get ready for Embiid guys, lol.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

Was that trade even there? Fox was pretty clear about desires and yes, there were clearly other factors involved. And sorry, LaVine isn't garbage. Dude's a walking bucket. The scary thing is when this team pushes up to .500 and they let that murkiness walk them out farther into the darkness as a franchise. Yeah, get ready for Embiid guys, lol.

We don’t know but you think no team was gonna take a chance. Miami has the city and one of his close friends why wouldn’t they risk it if all it takes is JJJ who was benched at the time and jovic.

 

[ESP47]

Hate and cutting off your nose to spite your face is something else entirely. You move on and if a franchise is smart they choose the path of least opposition from that point forward. Can't contend or have a tiny window because of age and cap bloat? Pretty clear unless you don't even care about contending. Like ever.

Hey I never said that lol

 

[coolhandluke]

One can only hope Vivek realizes that we can't win with these cats on National Cat Day.

 

[ShastaKingsFan]

Was that trade even there? Fox was pretty clear about desires and yes, there were clearly other factors involved. And sorry, LaVine isn't garbage. Dude's a walking bucket. The scary thing is when this team pushes up to .500 and they let that murkiness walk them out farther into the darkness as a franchise. Yeah, get ready for Embiid guys, lol.

This team will not get to .500 for the rest of this season. It would take a herculean effort, that I wouldn't bet on happening

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Yet you dont give this same grace to Lavine.

Because I saw LaVine play on a team that had Lauri Markkanen, Nikola Vučević and Coby White and only win 31 games. I saw him play on a team with Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and Ricky Rubio (when he was still good) and only win 31 games. I don't believe that Fox has ever played a full season with teammates that good and finished 50 games under .500 but, I dunno, maybe you have a much higher opinion of Buddy Hield and/or the ghost of Vince Carter than I do?