After losing the first three seeding games during the NBA restart, the Sacramento Kings can’t seem to escape the daunting limbo between a playoff spot and a top draft pick.
Sacramento Kings fans aren’t scratching their heads looking for the root of all issues. They know exactly where the problems arise and are being vocal about their discontent. The source of this dumpster fire of an organization we Sacramentans call, less proudly each day, the Sacramento Kings, comes straight from ownership and the front office.
Nothing is more difficult and frustrating than dealing with an incompetent owner, and Kings fans have had to deal with this problem for two owners in a row. Granted, Vivek was not given the keys to a well oiled machine. But after seven years, the machine has not run any better. So it’s safe to say that is where most anger is stemming from.
From wanting to run a team with a man cherry picking on offense the whole game to using the ownership card to draft Nik Stauskas, Vivek has been been more of a mad scientist (key word: mad) than an ideal owner. Even endearment from fans for saving the Kings from leaving Sacramento is running thin.
But the issues don’t stop with Ranadive. Vlade Divac is part of the overall mess, and Vivek is a mere enabler. The same man who’s jersey hangs in the rafters of the Golden 1 Center is erasing any post-retirement legacy he had established by making boneheaded decisions as the General Manager.
But this is not breaking news.
Vlade’s poor decision making, as fans are wholly aware, affects the team greatly and the two biggest errors at the moment seem to be drafting Marvin Bagley over Luka Doncic and firing Dave Joerger and replacing him quickly with Luke Walton.
Again, enabling takes place. Vivek enables Vlade who enables Luke, an under qualified coach who really only has a head coaching job because he led a 73-win Warriors team to a 39-4 start while Steve Kerr was out (but not really out, if you know what I’m saying). These are facts.
Walton dragged an up-and-coming team down to a subpar NBA club in less than a year, and these seeding games thus far have really proven that point.
Luke enables his players (Buddy Hield for instance) to play at their own pace which in turn leads to poor shot selection, lethargic defense, and a bad attitude. An under experienced team does not need a laissez-faire style coach. They need someone like Joerger who will lay down the law and not be afraid to make the right decision despite its initial lack of popularity.
Issues stem from the very top and fall all the way down to the players’ level. Vivek enables Vlade, who enables Luke who enables the players. If Vivek knew what he was doing, then there would be no issue, but unfortunately this is obviously not the case.
While Kings fans plead with Vivek to fire Vlade or sell the team, I watch and wait from a distance with the same intensity of anger and displeasure hoping that this feeling of hopelessness towards my beloved organization vanishes because I hate the fact that rooting for a laughing stock has been normal for quite some time.
