ockingsfan
Starter
The talk of the agents is because their kids would get minutes in Sacramento. Its not because we are all of a sudden the prime destination for the draftees.
Scott Perry is a great hire and in reality all the managers that were quoted that they would let their clients work out for the Kings have a pre-existing relationship with Scott (i.e BJ Armstrong has known him since high school)
The laughing stock and dis-functional franchise label is still well and truly there and it is not something that will be shed any time soon. Again it is another thing to "attract" a draftee and yet another to attract an "upper level free agent".
Rebuilds are not a quick thing unless you can sign a superstar free agents. It doesn't work like that for the small market franchise. Noah's contract is an albatross and I pause about it too but the bottom line is:
Well, the agents of rookie draftees are also the same agents for veteran free agents, so if the Kings can have a good experience with their new rookies and their agents, that can trickle down to the agent's veteran free agents in the future. Also, Scott Perry is still with the Kings, so that can only help with players agents in the future.
I'm not saying we will sign Kevin Durant or Steph Curry here, but good free agents may be willing to sign here. Koufos and Belilini and Collison were respected free agents a couple of summers ago and we signed them. Otto Porter may be highly unlikely, but I don't see the harm in making a pitch and see what happens. If he says no, then so be it, we still have cap space to use in a trade or other free agents.
I would much rather use the cap space on a trade for usable players like Mo Harkless or Brandon Knight, for a team that is in need for luxury tax or salary cap relief.
At the beginning of free agency each year, taking on a normal salary dump may net us a future 1st round pick. Using the cap space on a toxic salary dump for a player like Noah can kill our flexibility to make moves for players for 3 years. For a small market team, $56 million for dead cap space is hard to swallow.
I would rather use the cap space to try to and sign someone like SF Shabazz Muhmmad with some of the cap space, who is still young and has upside and is a California native.
And, if you are looking at the Knicks 2019 draft pick, you never know that far in the future. If Porzingis becomes a monster and they hit on their lottery pick this year and next year, and they sign a big free agent by 2019 (they are in the #1 media market in the world), you may be looking at a late teens or early 20's 1st round pick, instead of a lottery pick by 2019.
I would look to another small market team in Utah as a blue print to rebuild. They built through the draft, drafted well and developed their own players and now they are a solid playoff team. They didn't take on any toxic contracts in their rebuild. As a small market team, taking on a $56 million albatross of a contract can restrict a lot of moves for a small market team for many years.
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