Kings trade rumor SZN 2023-2024 edition!
- Thread starter Tetsujin
- Start date
Yeah, there's no rush, but there is a downside about being aggressive with moves because everyone knows it. You realistically want to be set before you start handing out 2nd max deals. It's age that starts working against you when it comes to adding pieces because of the cap rules. The Warrriors are what it looks like to aggressively go after talent and if they don't change over Barnes, Durant, Dlo then on to Wiggins it's plausible they have 3 less rings because of it. The Pacers going after all star talent before Tyrese gets paid is when you want to do that. Monte was unfortunately behind the 8 ball since he got Fox post rookie contract. Now he's got to finish the job.
I don't know how we decide who is or is not a "top 5 player". I think if we were to poll the forum there may be as many as 15 different players in the league who fit that category for someone. Fox has slumped a bit of late but for most of this season he was right near or within the top 5 in scoring. He's also at the very least above average for his position defensively and last I checked he was 6th overall in steals per game. Doesn't that make him a top 5 player? Sabonis leads the league in double-doubles and rebounds and lately he's putting up triple double games more often than not. That may not be top 5 exactly if that includes dominant isolation scoring ability, but it's close. Maybe you can win without a true MVP if you have two guys who are in the next tier just below that? Especially if your #3 is a guy like Keegan who is in Year 2 of his NBA career and has put up a 47 point game and shown evidence of All-Defense potential.
Where I diverge from your team building philosophy is that it appears you want 4 dominant scorers and one defender on the floor for the bulk of the game and I think that works for stats and accolades and good press and All-Star spots but it doesn't work in the playoffs. and it's not a viable long-term strategy for sustained success. We lost that Golden State series in large part because Kevon Looney kicked our butts on the boards. Swap him out for another scorer like Siakam and maybe we even win that series? The role-players aren't just guys who fill in around the edges -- you cannot win with any kind of consistency unless you have multiple role-players on the floor complimenting your stars or your stars are doing lots of role-player things (ie locking people up on defense and hitting catch and shoot threes regularly).
We're not going to take the next step by adding another 20 ppg scorer (just look at Phoenix this season) nor are we going to get there by adding just 1 defender but continuing to play a 3pt chucking lineup in every 4th quarter. It's going to take a team-wide commitment to defense from every guy on the roster and an understanding that more than 3 guys are not going to score in double figures every night. The quickest way to get us there is to add multiple guys who will contribute toward building that culture -- guys who only care about dominating on defense but can hit an occasional jumper iwhen they're left open.
Where I diverge from your team building philosophy is that it appears you want 4 dominant scorers and one defender on the floor for the bulk of the game and I think that works for stats and accolades and good press and All-Star spots but it doesn't work in the playoffs. and it's not a viable long-term strategy for sustained success. We lost that Golden State series in large part because Kevon Looney kicked our butts on the boards. Swap him out for another scorer like Siakam and maybe we even win that series? The role-players aren't just guys who fill in around the edges -- you cannot win with any kind of consistency unless you have multiple role-players on the floor complimenting your stars or your stars are doing lots of role-player things (ie locking people up on defense and hitting catch and shoot threes regularly).
We're not going to take the next step by adding another 20 ppg scorer (just look at Phoenix this season) nor are we going to get there by adding just 1 defender but continuing to play a 3pt chucking lineup in every 4th quarter. It's going to take a team-wide commitment to defense from every guy on the roster and an understanding that more than 3 guys are not going to score in double figures every night. The quickest way to get us there is to add multiple guys who will contribute toward building that culture -- guys who only care about dominating on defense but can hit an occasional jumper iwhen they're left open.
I get it, I just think we have to be elite at something. There are currently 13 teams better than us on offense and we are a middle of the pack on defense. We have to figure out how to be near the top in one of those and closer to top ten in the other to have a real shot. If it’s defense, great but that probably means a new power forward, shooting guard and another bench defender, and even then 14th in offense won’t get it done.
As far as player rankings go, they are subjective of course but someone who knows ball without a rooting interest would prob have Fox in the 6-10 range and Sabonis 13-18. That’s my best guess anyway.
As far as player rankings go, they are subjective of course but someone who knows ball without a rooting interest would prob have Fox in the 6-10 range and Sabonis 13-18. That’s my best guess anyway.
If Fox is in that 6-10 range, how many of the guys above him are on the tail end of their careers or nearing retirement? KD, Steph, and Lebron are all 35 and older. It would only take a few of them to fall out of that tier for him to sneak in there. I think maybe that's close enough? Certainly it's better than this franchise has had in a long long time.
I agree with this in principle that the team needs to be elite at something but it seems to me if the difference between top 3 in offense (last year) and 14th in offense this year is just guys hitting or not hitting their threes than that's just too much variance for me to be happy about. Building a dominant defensive team feels like a more stable foundation. And we're not that far off considering we only have one good wing defender (Keegan) in the rotation and we're middle of the pack right now instead of bottom 5. I wonder how hard it would be to just find 3 guys on the waiver wire or free agency or trading block who are just balls to the wall defenders and see if they mix well with our high scoring core. We could just rotate in minimum contract guys on unguaranteed deals until we find a group that works.
I agree with this in principle that the team needs to be elite at something but it seems to me if the difference between top 3 in offense (last year) and 14th in offense this year is just guys hitting or not hitting their threes than that's just too much variance for me to be happy about. Building a dominant defensive team feels like a more stable foundation. And we're not that far off considering we only have one good wing defender (Keegan) in the rotation and we're middle of the pack right now instead of bottom 5. I wonder how hard it would be to just find 3 guys on the waiver wire or free agency or trading block who are just balls to the wall defenders and see if they mix well with our high scoring core. We could just rotate in minimum contract guys on unguaranteed deals until we find a group that works.
In any case that's at least up for debate. SGA, Haliburton, Maxey, Tatum, Wemby... they're all in that next man up tier waiting to sneak in to the MVP discussion. But also, nothing is guaranteed. Ja Morant looked like a sure-thing to join that MVP tier last season and where is he now? Did Anthony Davis ever make it there despite sky-high expectations on draft night? Is Zion Williamson even relevant anymore? I think Fox, as of this season, is squarely in the mix with all of these guys.
As far as best players I’d say:
Joker
Embiid
Giannis
SGA
Luka
Steph
Kd
Tatum
I’d say the consensus would have these guys ahead although debatable. Then you have guys like Paul George and the Claw who are outstanding this year, obviously always worried about health. Still having 2 guys in the top 15ish is an incredible start.
I only got to listen to tonight’s game but Keegan only made one 3 and had 27 points. That is incredibly encouraging! If he can continue down this path, maybe the front office is right and we have a Midwest Lauri on our hands.
Defensively we need a stud at the 4 and a pat bev type to motivate our guys. I think we need one jerk on the team and we don’t have one.
I’m open to several paths, I just hope Monte can make the type of trade he wants with the assets we have
Joker
Embiid
Giannis
SGA
Luka
Steph
Kd
Tatum
I’d say the consensus would have these guys ahead although debatable. Then you have guys like Paul George and the Claw who are outstanding this year, obviously always worried about health. Still having 2 guys in the top 15ish is an incredible start.
I only got to listen to tonight’s game but Keegan only made one 3 and had 27 points. That is incredibly encouraging! If he can continue down this path, maybe the front office is right and we have a Midwest Lauri on our hands.
Defensively we need a stud at the 4 and a pat bev type to motivate our guys. I think we need one jerk on the team and we don’t have one.
I’m open to several paths, I just hope Monte can make the type of trade he wants with the assets we have
I'm getting concerned that Monte takes too long to make decisions on players and moves and will lose out on improving the team. He ran it back but he should had seized the moment and try to make a bigger move than to bring the whole team back from a team that got bounced in the 1st round of the playoffs. A couple of years ago the Suns had a good showing in the "Bubble" and then made a big move to get Chris Paul in that summer. They wound up in the Finals and a couple of games away from winning a championship.
I'm worried that the Kings will become stagnant and not make any moves at the deadline. Because this current team as is would be lucky to get out of the 1st round in the West.
I'm worried that the Kings will become stagnant and not make any moves at the deadline. Because this current team as is would be lucky to get out of the 1st round in the West.
SGA has speared himself from those other guys he’d be in mvp talks daily if he didn’t play in OKC. As much as I hate Morant dude came back to a team that was top 3 bad and instantly looked elite from game 1 with him. Our only hope is Keegan he’s gonna determine how high the ceiling goes. Also speaking of SGA my god Presti did it again Chet/SGA/Jalen are all elite players Jalen is an all star in his second year and he’ll Chet might be too
I've liked SGA since his time at Kentucky so I don't want to get labeled a hater here but his resume is inflated to hell right now by ridiculous officiating sending him to the line 8-10 times a game, even when he's the one who initiates contact. I don't see him as a clear level above Fox as a player -- just as a flopper. And as a person with standards, that just doesn't sit right with me.
I was thinking more about the Grant/Thybulle package and one of the biggest drawbacks is the fact that they average a combined 7.0 rebounds per 36. Barnes & Huerter average a combined 9.2 rebounds per game.
With the 27 year old Bruce Brown now in Toronto (and potentially available), I’m wondering if a Grant/Brown package would be better. You still get the defense & toughness Thybulle brings but Brown is also an exceptional rebounder for his size and is a much better ball handler & passer/playmaker. His shooting is down this year but was at 36% and 40% the prior 2 seasons while playing around an excellent passing C.
With the 27 year old Bruce Brown now in Toronto (and potentially available), I’m wondering if a Grant/Brown package would be better. You still get the defense & toughness Thybulle brings but Brown is also an exceptional rebounder for his size and is a much better ball handler & passer/playmaker. His shooting is down this year but was at 36% and 40% the prior 2 seasons while playing around an excellent passing C.
Im not too familiar with Brown, but seems he’s got defensive chops and can swing between SG and SF so should be a good addition.
If we can’t package Barnes, Huerter, and Mitchell for a star, perhaps we just need to break that package down and see what they net us individually.
Huerter may have had a few good games but im not convinced he’s back, Monk is not making a good case lately for starter status, so yeah Brown might work, what would it take? And if there is serious interest in Barnes from Houston i’d like to know what they’re thinking. Davion just needs to go to another team, best for everyone at this point.
I just don’t see Grant happening, not enough indication he’s available.
If we can’t package Barnes, Huerter, and Mitchell for a star, perhaps we just need to break that package down and see what they net us individually.
Huerter may have had a few good games but im not convinced he’s back, Monk is not making a good case lately for starter status, so yeah Brown might work, what would it take? And if there is serious interest in Barnes from Houston i’d like to know what they’re thinking. Davion just needs to go to another team, best for everyone at this point.
I just don’t see Grant happening, not enough indication he’s available.
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Brown looked really good in Toronto last night. Not sure what they plan to do with him. I kinda wonder if they just plan to keep him unless they have a big free agent target. If they decline the team option they will have over 40 mil in cap space but there aren’t many great free agents. Def looked like a glue guy