While Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair is open to the idea of making some big moves to improve the team, it seems he has a lot of faith in the current roster and may end up taking a very careful approach to blockbuster changes in the coming months.
The Sacramento Kings were arguably the best story in the NBA last season. After 16 straight losing seasons, the franchise shocked the basketball world by winning the Pacific Division and earning the third seed in the West playoffs with an offense that was one of the best in the league. Not only that, they nearly bounced the defending champion Golden State Warriors in the opening round of the postseason.
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For the first time in nearly two decades, there is a great deal of hope around the team and its potential in the years ahead. While the Kings have never been known for making big splashes in NBA free agency or the trade market, they opened the door to a great deal of speculation on draft night when they made a trade that helped to free up a bunch of cap space.
It led many to wonder if the front office might swing a move that could all of a sudden make them a serious title contender next season. Unfortunately, that did not happen and McNair instead chose to solidify the current roster by re-signing Harrison Barnes and giving a huge extension to All-Star Domantas Sabonis.
Sacramento Kings record (’22-’23): 48-34
It was a bit of a letdown for Sacramento Kings fans with grand hopes for next season. In a conversation with The Athletic on Wednesday, McNair was asked about not adding an impact player in June. And while he admitted they looked into potential additions, he believes there is just as much upset in the players already on the roster.
“(I’m) not saying that we won’t look at upgrades we didn’t. Because we certainly explored all those options. But knowing that one of our options was going to be to bring the bulk of our team back (was appealing). I think sometimes, you don’t want to be too complacent, and we know the West is going to be tough.
“On the other hand, Harrison’s our oldest rotation player. He just turned 31. … Everybody else is pre-prime or just beginning their prime — 27 or younger. So it’s not like, ‘Oh, we’re gonna bring it together and there’s no real chance of improvement.'”
– Monte McNair
McNair reportedly looked into the Sacramento Kings adding Raptors stars OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam during and after the season, and it is good to know he is looking into things. But sometimes making big moves is about taking big risks and it seems like McNair is not ready to do that to take the team to the next level in a difficult conference.
If their young players don’t take another step forward, it will be interesting to see if the GM becomes risky with the expectations much larger next season.