Did the Sacramento Kings completely change their fate through the draft?
While it sounds crazy when you think about the Kings having a good draft — it is still a reality.
As the All-Star weekend came to a close the NBA heated up with feriocity as suddenly DeMarcus Cousins was traded away from Sacramento to the New Orleans Pelicans. A trade that shook the NBA world and certainly Sacramento Kings fans around the world.
Baron Davis may of had the most important thought — Sacramento blew up the roster and are officially staring over from scratch.
They (the Kings) basically traded DeMarcus Cousins for rookie Buddy Hield — someone who the Kings were allegedly high on in the previous years draft. Now, someone who he also know made the All-NBA Rookie first team, which is a nice honor for Hield and the Kings.
It doesn’t meant that the devastation wasn't real though. Kings fan felt betrayed and more than likely felt like idiots for buying into the Kings franchise after making such a crazy move. The Kings traded away a legitimate all-star, the best center in the league, an offensive nightmare and they did it all for a rookie?
Okay! So, I guess it is time to move on then. I guess it is time to forgive and forget, I mean what else can you really do? The roster is in shambles and you have to finish out the season with what you got and hope for the best in the draft.
Well this is where the business side of things really picked up for the Kings and Vlade Divac — the man at the center of the Cousins move. The Kings go into the draft with the 5th and 10th pick of the first round and they walk out with the 5th, 15th and 20th after trading away the 10th pick. The Kings also had a 2nd round pick that they would use 0h so cleverly.
For the most part, the Kings struggle a lot in the draft and are not very good at picking needs. For instance, last year they Kings selected a center when they had a legitimate all-star center. They needed more than a back-up center at the time but for some reason they thought that a center was a good idea.
But again, that is in the past.
It is now 2017 and the NBA Draft has passed and the result speaks volumes as to what the plans are for the Kings organization. Vlade Divac and company started with picking a prospect that was intriguing enough for any of the top five picks in De’Aaron Fox. Fox is a legitimate PG coming by way of Kentucky. He has the ability to start right away for the Kings and his upside is that he has an all-star look and feel to him. This can bode well for the Kings down the line.
The next pick, 15th overall, is Justin Jackson for the Kings. He brings the scoring aspect to this team. He can create for himself and the scariest thing about him is that he is quiet and deadly. A combination that is unsuspecting to defenses until he torches your defensive lineup.
With the 20th pick the Kings selected Harry Giles. Giles may be the most interesting prospect to select as he was a formerly rated number one player in the country. Knee injuries have set him back, specifically in the draft. With his stock dropping, the Kings decided to take a chance and with already selecting correctly with the first two selections, the Kings had a draft pick to risk. Giles is a risk due to injury but if it works out for the Kings then they could possibly change their fate around completely. Giles has a ton of upside and is possibly one of the best players in the draft when healthy. He could easily be the next coming of Chris Webber and that is something all Kings fans can get behind.
The last Kings pick of the night went to Frank Mason. Mason led the Jayhawks to a lot of wins but most importantly, Frank is the most decorated player to ever leave Kansas and that is truly saying something of his talent. Mason is a leader and pairing him with the Kings first selection of the draft, Fox, the Kings have a first selection PG and a second selection PG and both can lead and win.
What does all of this mean for the Kings?
Well, a lot is still happening for the Kings organization but as it stands, the team is a lot younger and truly looks to be on the come up sooner rather than later.
Between Buddy Hield and Frank Mason the Kings now have the last two National Players of the Year — which means winners and competitors on your roster. The Kings have also acquired three players from the University of Kentucky over the last three years — a premier program in the country.
On that note, the Kings are building a franchise of players that are coming from premier universities. Those universities include Kentucky, Kansas, Duke, North Carolina and Syracuse. This is not a low blow to other colleges but when it comes to basketball specifically, these universities stand out. Sacramento has acquired eight players from these universities in the last four years and it is nice to see. And no, I did not forget UCLA — the Kings just have not drafted anyone from them specifically.
More is coming to the Kings as well. The Kings are finally looking to bring Bogdan Bogdanovic who is one of the premier shooters in all of Europe. If this is the case then just maybe the Kings are adding the next coming of Peja Stojakovic. While that could be a long shot, you just never truly know.
The hopes of the Kings lie in a lot of young studs but the upside is that future is looking bright. On top of all of this the Kings will have a lot of money to work with considering the fact that many of the veterans of the time are being cut or are walking away. And yes that is a positive. Each of those guys, while not bad players, represent a culture of losing in Sacramento and if the Kings are truly moving forward then they must let go of that talent as well.
The Kings have high hopes for the future and all we can do is wait and see how it all unfolds.
