Sweet 16 it is not! Bitter 16 would be more appropriate.
And so the Sacramento Kings are in an all-too-familiar situation. It’s been 16 years since the Kings have made the playoffs. That’s the longest playoff drought in NBA history. It’s a record the Kings are not proud to own.
It is what it is, though, and now the Kings have to put the past in the rearview mirror.
Gone is interim coach Alvin Gentry. The search is on for a new head coach, who will be the seventh in the nine years Vivek Ranadive has owned the Kings.
Is Ranadive part of the problem in Sacramento?
In Sunday’s Sacramento Bee, Jason Anderson portrayed Ranadive as a meddling owner who has hindered his basketball people from doing what he hired them to do.
The good news is Anderson mentions Ranadive seems to have loosened his grip on the basketball operation. After two seasons, General Manager Monte McNair seems to have earned Ranadive’s trust enough that the decisions McNair makes are his own.
The first thing on McNair’s agenda now is hiring a new coach – his coach.
In a media briefing Tuesday, McNair promised a comprehensive search and not a quick hire as was the case with Dave Joerger and Luke Walton.
“Ultimately we are going to bring in somebody that’s going to win.”
“The number one thing is that we find the right person.”
McNair admits there is pressure to get to the playoffs and he wants to get there as soon as possible. “We are going to be aggressive. We have to be disciplined. There are no easy buttons to go and fix this right away.”
“We want to get back there as soon as we can, but we need to do it in a way that we stay there.”
Despite a tough season, McNair says “we are confident in the foundation that we are building here” with the “Fox and the Ox” – De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis.
He also admits “there is certainly more work to be done”.
“With Domas coming in we expected him to be great…and he was even better. Now it’s our job just to continue building around him.”
Despite the defense being horrible again, McNair says “shooting will be a huge priority” for the Kings next season. Finding elite shooters will a key to bringing out the best in Sabonis and Fox.
This will be an important offseason for the Kings. They need to find the right coach and make a big upgrade to the roster whether through the draft, free agency or by trade.
Kings fans are some of the best in the NBA, but they are also getting weary. It’s time for winning basketball in Sacramento!
We deserve it!
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