Sacramento Kings Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Alex Len Tests Positive For COVID-19

June 24th, 2020 at 10:26pm CST by Luke Adams

A third Kings player has tested positive for COVID-19, with Shams Charania of The Athletic reporting (via Twitter) that center Alex Len has been diagnosed with the coronavirus. Word broke earlier tonight that Jabari Parker and Buddy Hield have also tested positive.

“I underwent testing yesterday in Sacramento and was found to be positive for COVID-19,” Len said in a statement. “I want to think the Sacramento Kings for their great care and the NBA for putting the protocols in place to allow me to catch this early. I have immediately entered isolation and look forward to being cleared and rejoining my teammates for our playoff push.”

Len, who turned 27 last Tuesday, appeared in nine games for the Kings this season after being traded from Atlanta to Sacramento along with Parker. He averaged 6.6 PPG, 7.1 RPG, and 1.4 BPG in 16.7 minutes per contest for the Kings.

Teams playing in Orlando this summer can opt to replace a player who contracts COVID-19 with a substitute player. However, with the start of the seeding games still more than five weeks away, there’s no indication at this point that Len, Parker, or Hield won’t be recovered and ready to go when the season resumes.

Buddy Hield Tests Positive For Novel Coronavirus

June 24th, 2020 at 8:04pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Kings swingman Buddy Hield has tested positive for the novel coronavirus COVID-19, according to Sean Cunningham of ABC10 Sacramento (Twitter link). According to Cunningham, Hield has been in Dallas for most of the NBA’s hiatus, but had notched 45 points during a Skinz League Game in Oklahoma two weeks ago.

Hield tells Leo Beas of Cowbell Kingdom (Twitter link) that he feels fine and will be ready to join the team in Orlando once he’s medically cleared.

Hield was replaced by Bogdan Bogdanovic in the team’s starting lineup by first-year Kings head coach Luke Walton in January, and has come off the bench for the team’s past 20 games. Hield converted 46.3% of his long range attempts in February following the move, per Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee.

The 6’4″ Hield, an Oklahoma alum, is averaging 19.8 PPG, 4.8 RPG, and 3.1 APG for the 28-36 Kings this season. This year overall, Hield is connecting on 42.9% of his field goals (including 39.5% on a career-high 9.7 three-point attempts per game) and 85.5% of his attempts from the charity stripe.

Meanwhile in Chicago, Hield’s Kings teammate Jabari Parker announced today that he too has tested positive for the coronavirus. Sacramento made the cut to join the 22 squads invited to the NBA’s season restart in Orlando.

Jabari Parker Tests Positive For COVID-19

June 24th, 2020 at 6:37pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Kings power forward Jabari Parker has tested positive for the novel coronavirus COVID-19, according to an announcement from Parker via the team’s official Twitter account (Twitter link). In the statement, Parker indicated that he had received the news “several days ago” and has been self-isolating at his Chicago home.

“I am progressing in my recovery and feeling well,” Parker said. “I look forward to joining my teammates in Orlando as we return to the court for the resumption of the NBA season.”

Parker was part of a trade deadline deal that sent him and center Alex Len to Sacramento by way of Atlanta in a deal that shipped Dewayne Dedmon back to the Hawks. He has played just one game for the Kings in California’s state capital.

Across 33 games played this season (32 of those transpiring in Atlanta), Parker has averaged 14.7 PPG on a solid 49.9% field goal percentage, with 5.9 RPG and 1.8 APG. The former No. 2 overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft has fashioned himself into a bench scorer since returning from two devastating ACL tears in his left knee while with his first club, the Bucks. The Kings are his fourth team in the past two seasons.

The Kings number among the 22 NBA teams that will be part of the league’s restart, scheduled for July 30th in Orlando. The team added Corey Brewer after discovering the news of Parker’s condition, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Corey Brewer Provides Defensive Depth For Kings

June 24th, 2020 at 3:49pm CST by Luke Adams

With the Kings looking to play more small ball, a veteran swingman like Corey Brewer – who spent time with the team last season – is a good fit, writes Jason Jones of The Athletic. Jones notes that Brewer probably won’t play a major role this summer, but suggests the 34-year-old will give the team a reliable perimeter defender off the bench.

Kings Sign Corey Brewer

June 23rd, 2020 at 3:23pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JUNE 23: The Kings have officially signed Brewer, the team confirmed today in a press release. Sacramento now has a full roster, with 15 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals.

JUNE 22: Free agent swingman Corey Brewer plans to sign with the Kings, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Beginning on Tuesday, all teams will have a one-week transactions window to waive and sign players. Only players on the team’s eligible roster on July 1st will be allowed to travel to Orlando.

Brewer, who did not play in the NBA this season, had multiple offers, according to Charania. The Kings have an open roster spot and thus can add Brewer without waiving another player.

Brewer played a combined 31 games for Philadelphia and Sacramento last season and has averaged 8.7 PPG in 23.0 MPG over 814 career games. During his 24-game stint with the Kings, he averaged 4.1 PPG in 14.7 PPG.

His representatives tried in vain to find him a place to play this season prior to the suspension of play. Earlier this month, Brewer told HoopsHype he was hopeful to could find a place to play.

“We had some talks with a few teams, but nothing really happened. My agent is still working on it, so we’ll see,” he said. “I feel like I can still help a team and I feel like I have a few good years left.”

Brewer turned 34 in March and has worn the uniform of eight different teams.

Walton Could Go Small In Orlando Restart

June 19th, 2020 at 6:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Kings will likely go smaller in their starting lineup with Richaun Holmes at center and Harrison Barnes playing power forward, according to Jason Jones of The Athletic. In that scenario, Marvin Bagley III — the second overall pick in the 2018 draft — would come off the bench. Coach Luke Walton could also employ some three-guard looks in Orlando with De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic on the court at the same time.

2020 NBA Front Office Shakeup Tracker

June 19th, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Having created a space to track the NBA’s head coaching changes this year, we’re now doing the same for the teams shaking up their front offices.

The front office structure for an NBA franchise generally isn’t as cut-and-dried as a coaching staff. All 30 teams will enter the 2020/21 season employing a head coach and a staff of assistant coaches. But not every team will have an executive with the title of “president of basketball operations” or “executive VP of basketball operations” on its payroll. And while some general managers around the league have decision-making power within their organizations, that doesn’t apply to all of them.

Nonetheless, we’ll do our best to track this offseason’s front office changes in the space below, monitoring which executives have decision-making power in each new management group. Some of these searches could extend well into the summer or fall, so be sure to check back for the latest updates.

You’ll be able to access this page anytime under the “Hoops Rumors Features” menu on the right sidebar on our desktop site, or on the “Features” page in our mobile menu.

Updated 10-24-20 (1:43pm CT)

Active Searches:

None

Completed Searches:

Chicago Bulls

In:
- Arturas Karnisovas, executive VP of basketball operations (story)
- Marc Eversley, general manager (story)
- J.J. Polk, assistant general manager (story)
- Pat Connelly, VP of player personnel (story)
Out:
- GM Gar Forman dismissed (story)
- Executive VP of basketball operations John Paxson moved to advisory role (story)

Some combination of Paxson and/or Forman had been running the show in Chicago since Jerry Krause‘s departure in 2003, so when the Bulls overhauled their front office this spring, there was skepticism among fans that the duo known as GarPax would really be stripped of its power.

Paxson remained in the organization and may be involved in some basketball decisions, but Forman is gone, and by all accounts, the Bulls are prepared to give the reins to Karnisovas and his new right-hand man Eversley. One of their first orders of business will be making a decision on head coach Jim Boylen, who is very much on the hot seat.

Denver Nuggets

In:
- Calvin Booth, general manager (story)
  - Note: Promoted from assistant GM
- Tommy Balcetis, assistant GM (story)
  - Note: Promoted from VP of basketball strategy and analytics
Out:
- General manager Arturas Karnisovas left for job with Bulls (story)

The Nuggets had to replace Karnisovas once he decided to take the top job in Chicago, but didn’t technically conduct a full-fledged search for his replacement, opting instead to stay in-house and promote Booth. He’ll be the new top lieutenant in Denver for president of basketball operations Tim Connelly.

Detroit Pistons

In:
- Troy Weaver, general manager (story)
- David Mincberg, assistant general manager (story)
- Harold Ellis and Ryan West, scouting department (story)
Out:
- Assistant GM Malik Rose left for job with NBA league office (story)
- Assistant GM Pat Garrity left the organization (story)

Senior advisor Ed Stefanski has served as the Pistons’ de facto head of basketball operations for the last two years, but at the time of his hiring, he wasn’t necessarily viewed as someone who would hold that position for the next five or 10 years.

With its hiring of Weaver, Detroit has brought aboard a GM who will work with Stefanski and “run the basketball side of things,” according to team owner Tom Gores. While Stefanski, vice chairman Arn Tellem, and head coach Dwane Casey figure to be involved to some extent in basketball decisions, it sounds as if Weaver will take the lead on those matters.

It’s worth noting that the Pistons are expected to hire a couple new assistant GMs, so while their GM search is finished, their front office additions likely aren’t.

Houston Rockets

In:
- Rafael Stone, general manager (story)
  - Note: Promoted from executive VP of basketball operations
Out:
- General manager Daryl Morey stepped down (story)
- VP of basketball operations Monte McNair left for job with Kings (story)

After losing McNair to the Kings, the Rockets saw their longtime head of basketball operations exit the organization, as Morey resigned from his GM position.

Rather than launching a full-fledged search for a new general manager, the Rockets promoted Stone, a longtime Morey lieutenant who will take control of the team’s basketball operations department. Assistant GM Eli Witus will take on additional responsibilities as Stone’s new right-hand man.

New York Knicks

In:
- Leon Rose, president of basketball operations (story)
- William Wesley, executive VP/senior basketball advisor (story)
- Frank Zanin, assistant general manager – pro scouting (story)
- Walt Perrin, assistant general manager – college scouting (story)
- Brock Aller, VP of basketball and strategic planning (story)
Out:
- President of basketball operations Steve Mills reassigned to MSG board (story)
- Consultant David Blatt not retained (story)
- VP of player development Craig Robinson not retained (story)
- Director of player personnel Harold Ellis not retained (story)
Retained:
- Scott Perry, general manager (story)

The Knicks made their changes in the winter, firing Mills during the first week of February and officially bringing Rose aboard less than a month later. Still, we’re including them here because the work they’ve done reshaping their front office has extended into the offseason, with the hiring of Zanin, Perrin, and Aller.

Following the Knicks’ surprising decision to extend Perry’s contract by one year, the next items on the docket include hiring a permanent head coach and deciding how to use their cap room once free agency begins.

Sacramento Kings

In:

Monte McNair, general manager (story)
Joe Dumars, chief strategy officer (story)

Out:

Vlade Divac, general manager (story)
Peja Stojakovic, assistant GM (story)

Although Divac’s departure was classified as him “stepping down” from his general manager position with the Kings, subsequent reporting suggested that team owner Vivek Ranadive wanted him to accept a reduced role, with Dumars taking on more power in Sacramento’s front office.

Dumars briefly took the reins as the Kings’ interim executive VP of basketball operations and general manager, and was involved in the search for a new permanent GM, but transitioned to a chief strategy officer position once Sacramento landed on Rockets assistant GM McNair as its new head of basketball operations.

Restart Notes: Player Concerns, Reporters, Announcers

June 11th, 2020 at 9:41am CST by Luke Adams

After reporting on Wednesday that several dozen players have expressed reservations about the NBA’s plan to resume its season in Orlando this summer, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski provided a few more details in a full story and in subsequent tweets.

According to Wojnarowski, approximately 40 to 50 players were “on and off” a conference call in a 24-hour stretch from Tuesday to Wednesday to discuss their concerns. However, there has been no formal petition to the NBPA from any group asking not to be included in the restart, sources tell ESPN.

The “restrictive and isolated” nature of the proposed Orlando bubble is a major issue being discussed ny those concerned players, per Wojnarowski. Players who leave the bubble are expected to be subjected a 10-day quarantine, and family members won’t be permitted to join players at Disney until after the first round of the playoffs — players will have been in Orlando for nearly two months by that point.

It remains to be seen how many players will seriously consider skipping the restart altogether. However, sources tell ESPN that if a player does decide not to participate, his team will likely be permitted to replace him with a substitution player. A player who is supplanted by a replacement player wouldn’t be eligible to participate in the remainder of the season, Woj notes. In other words, a player who stays home and gets replaced wouldn’t be able to change his mind and report to Orlando if his team makes a deep postseason run.

According to Wojnarowski, if a player has a medical issue that may increase his risk of suffering more serious COVID-19 symptoms, he’ll be permitted to seek an independent medical evaluation. Even if he’s deemed fit to participate in the resumed season, the player could stay home without consequence (beyond not being paid for the games they miss).

Here’s more on the NBA’s restart:

According to a Professional Basketball Writers Association memo obtained by Robert Silverman of The Daily Beast, there’s a chance that a select group of reporters could be permitted to cover the resumed season and interact with players and coaches in Orlando. However, those reporters wouldn’t be permitted to re-enter the bubble if they leave, and their employers would have to pay for their housing during their three months at Disney, the cost of which may be prohibitive for many outlets.
ABC and ESPN play-by-play announcer Mike Breen isn’t sure what the plans are for his role this summer, but hopes he’ll get the opportunity to call games in person in Orlando, as he tells Richard Deitsch of The Athletic. “We could possibly be doing games from a remote location, from a studio, or we could possibly be down in Orlando and doing the games there in a booth that socially distanced away from the players,” Breen said. “Everything is going to be determined over the next couple of weeks. But I would like to be in the arena to call the games.”
A panel of ESPN writers takes a closer look at the nine competitors for the final three playoff spots, evaluating the cases for and against the Grizzlies, Trail Blazers, Pelicans, Kings, Spurs, Suns, Nets, Magic, and Wizards earning a postseason berth.

Poll: Will Grizzlies Hang Onto No. 8 Seed In West?

June 9th, 2020 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

When the NBA season was suspended in March, the Grizzlies held a 3.5-game lead over the top challengers for the No. 8 seed, but were entering one of the toughest stretches of their 2019/20 schedule. At 32-33, Memphis had 17 games left. Of those 17 games, 11 were against playoff teams and five were against immediate threats to the Grizzlies’ playoff spot (Portland, New Orleans, and San Antonio).

Now that the league has settled on playing just eight more games this summer, the Grizzlies’ path to a postseason spot is simpler in some ways, but more complicated in others. Any team hoping to pass the Grizzlies for the No. 8 seed will have to make up four games in an eight-game stretch, which will be a tall order.

Even if the Grizzlies play sub-.500 ball and go 3-5 when play resumes, the Trail Blazers, Pelicans, Kings, or Spurs will have to go 7-1 to surpass or match them. The Suns, who are six games back, wouldn’t even be able to catch Memphis if the Grizz win more than two games.

However, the NBA’s new rules for Orlando also ensure that the Grizzlies will be subject to a play-in tournament if at least one team finishes within four games of them. In other words, unless Memphis increases or maintains its lead over all five teams behind them in the Western Conference standings during those eight seeding games, a play-in tournament is happening.

The Grizzlies would still have a leg up in that play-in tournament, which would pit them against the No. 9 team. Memphis would only have to win one game, while the challenger would have to win twice. But the club wouldn’t have much room for error — losing the first game in the play-in tournament would result in a winner-take-all second game.

Assuming the summer schedule is made up primarily of the next games on the team’s initial schedule, as expected, the Grizzlies will still have a challenging path, but it won’t be too grueling. Memphis wouldn’t be a major underdog against Portland, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, or New Orleans (twice). And while the Grizzlies would likely have to face the Bucks and possibly the Celtics, none of the West’s top three teams would be on their upcoming slate.

What do you think? When play resumes this summer, will the Grizzlies hang onto the No. 8 seed, clinching it outright or in a play-in tournament? Or will another team make a run and claim the conference’s final postseason berth?

Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Latest On The NBA’s Lottery Plans

June 3rd, 2020 at 9:13pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The NBA is expected to finalize a proposal on Thursday that will send 22 teams to Orlando in order to finish out the season. It will be a unique experience for a number of reasons — one interesting wrinkle will be how the league determines the lottery odds for 2020 without all of the clubs playing the same number of games.

The Warriors, Cavaliers, Timberwolves, Hawks, Pistons, Knicks, Bulls, and Hornets will likely be locked into the top eight lottery slots, a source tells Hoops Rumors. The order within the top eight has yet to be determined, but the structure means the Wizards couldn’t go 0-8 this summer when the season resumes and land a better position in the lottery than those teams that won’t be playing.

It’s “part of the tradeoff” for the franchises that won’t be given a chance to resume their campaigns, per the source. Another scenario discussed was freezing the lottery as it stands, allowing no movement up or down by any team, even those in the 9-14 positions. Either way, the top eight are expected to be assured of their standing.

Both the lottery and the combine had been postponed indefinitely, though they are now expected to take place in August. Nothing is finalized as of this writing, including the proposal to return.

Here’s a look at the odds of each lottery position as well as the order of teams, should the league go with the current standings:

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14
GSW	14	13.4	12.7	12	47.9	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
CLE	14	13.4	12.7	12	27.8	20	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
MIN	14	13.4	12.7	12	14.8	26	7.1	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
ATL	12.5	12.2	11.9	11.5	7.2	25.7	16.8	2.2	–	–	–	–	–	–
DET	10.5	10.5	10.6	10.5	2.2	19.6	26.7	8.8	0.6	–	–	–	–	–
NYK	9	9.2	9.4	9.6	–	8.6	29.6	20.6	3.8	0.2	–	–	–	–
CHI	7.5	7.8	8.1	8.5	–	–	19.7	34.1	12.9	1.3	>0	–	–	–
CHA	6	6.3	6.7	7.2	–	–	–	34.5	32.1	6.7	0.4	>0	–	–
WSH*	4.5	4.8	5.2	5.7	–	–	–	–	50.7	25.9	3	0.1	>0	–
PHX*	3	3.3	3.6	4	–	–	–	–	–	65.9	18.9	1.2	>0	>0
SAS*	2	2.2	2.4	2.8	–	–	–	–	–	–	77.6	12.6	0.4	>0
SAC**	1.3	1.4	1.6	1.8	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	86.1	7.6	0.1
NO**	1.2	1.3	1.5	1.7	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	92.0	2.3
POR*	0.5	0.6	0.6	0.7	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	97.6

*Will play eight more regular season games

** The Kings and Pelicans have matching 28-36 records and would be subject to a random tiebreaker to determine which team gets the No. 12 slot and which gets No. 13. Their spots in this list (and their odds) could be flipped if the NBA ends up freezing the standings to determine the lottery’s order.