Here are the first moves Monte McNair will make as general manager of the Kings
Newly appointed Kings general manager Monte McNair is a Princeton man. He caught a touchdown pass against Harvard in 2004, studied computer science and left the fabled ivy-covered campus on a path to the NBA.
McNair went to work as a researcher for STATS LLC before Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey hired him as an analyst in 2007. McNair helped propel one of the most data-driven front offices in one of the NBA’s top organizations, rising to director of basketball operations in 2013, vice president of basketball operations in 2015 and assistant general manager in October 2018.
All of these experiences led him to Sacramento, where the Kings announced Thursday they have hired McNair as their new general manager. McNair will try to recreate the success of Geoff Petrie, another Princeton man who guided the Kings to their greatest heights while serving as president of basketball operations from 1994 to 2013. The Kings made eight consecutive playoff appearances under Petrie (1999-2006), but they haven’t been back to the postseason since, amassing the NBA’s longest active playoff drought.
Joe Axelson, Bill Russell, Jerry Reynolds, Pete D’Alessandro and Vlade Divac have all tried and failed to build a winner in Sacramento. Now that responsibility belongs to McNair.
Will he try to make a bold move to bolster the roster and set the Kings up for a playoff run next season in a bid to avoid matching the Buffalo/San Diego/Los Angeles Clippers for the league’s longest playoff drought at 15 seasons? Or will he break this team down to start a rebuild with an eye toward sustainable, long-term success?
McNair has some big decisions to make and there are some matters that will require his immediate attention.
De’Aaron Fox
De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento’s dynamic 22-year-old point guard, is eligible for a large extension entering the final year of his rookie contract. Under the designated rookie rule in the collective bargaining agreement, the Kings can offer Fox a five-year extension worth up to 25% of the salary cap for the 2021-22 season — the year his new deal would start — with 8% annual raises.
The salary cap for 2021-22 is currently projected at $115 million, which would put Fox in line for a five-year deal worth $168.7 million. Some of the team’s offseason moves will play out differently with McNair calling the shots instead of Divac, but this probably isn’t one of them. McNair will put the money on the table before the deadline arrives a day before the start of the 2020-21 season to secure the future of a player who has committed himself to winning in Sacramento.
“I want to be here,” Fox told The Sacramento Bee earlier this season. “Obviously, I want to win, but I want to do it here. It’s been, what — 13, 14 years since the last time the Kings made the playoffs? I want to be a part of the first one.
“Obviously, we all want to win. There are some things we know we need to work on as a team, and I’m here for that. Every team has gone through it, probably not as long as the Kings have, but I want to be a part of that. I want to be able to get to the playoffs with this team, and, hopefully, when I’m a veteran in this league, be able to be a (championship) contender.”
Bogdan Bogdanovic
Back in October, Kings guard Bogdan Bogdanovic told The Bee the Kings offered him a four-year, $51.4 million extension, the maximum allowable at the time under CBA rules. Bogdanovic, 28, chose not to sign it, knowing he could attract more lucrative offers through free agency.
“I would like to stay,” Bogdanovic said. “Everyone knows that I love Sacramento. Everyone loves to be here. It’s a great group of guys. I’m happy right now and I was happy all these years, but I don’t want to rush anything.”
McNair will have to tender a $10.6 million qualifying offer to Bogdanovic before free agency begins to make him a restricted free agent, which would give the Kings the right to match any offer he receives. The Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat, New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns figure to have cap space, but how high will the bidding go for Bogdanovic?
The Kings already have $86 million plus incentives committed to Buddy Hield at the shooting guard position over the next four years, but Bogdanovic became the starter in January when coach Luke Walton decided to bring Hield off the bench. Bogdanovic’s camp can point to statistics showing he is one of the team’s best players. Under current conditions, the market won’t offer Bogdanovic the kind of money the Kings gave Hield and Harrison Barnes, but the price tag will likely rise to the range of $15 million to $18 million per year.
The Kings can afford to keep Hield and match any reasonable offer for Bogdanovic, but will McNair want to have that much money allocated to one position?
Nemanja Bjelica
The Kings could waive forward Nemanja Bjelica before his $7.15 million salary for the 2020-21 season becomes guaranteed the day before free agency begins, but they would gain no salary cap flexibility by doing so.
McNair will likely guarantee Bjelica’s salary and retain him as an asset going into the new season. Bjelica has been a key contributor since coming to Sacramento in 2018. He averaged career highs of 11.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists last season while shooting a career-best 41.9% from 3-point range.
That kind of production coupled with an expiring contract could make Bjelica, 32, a coveted chip in trade talks if the Kings start looking to acquire younger players and future draft picks.
Buddy Hield
This is one of the most interesting questions McNair faces. Hield made 873 3-pointers over his first four NBA seasons, more than any other player in league history, but concerns about his defense, decision making and ball handling are legitimate.
Walton took a trial-by-fire approach with Hield but eventually moved him to the bench. Hield excelled in a backup role and helped the Kings go 13-7 over a stretch of 20 games before the coronavirus shutdown, but he made it clear he would not be content with that role moving forward, hinting he might demand a trade.
The Kings signed Hield, 27, to a four-year, $86 million extension with $20 million more in incentives prior to the 2019-20 season. He is set to make $24.4 million this season in the first year of the new deal.
What kind of value does McNair see in Hield given his elite shooting skills and obvious deficiencies? That will be a fascinating assessment coming from McNair, who spent the past 13 years with a Rockets organization that has helped revolutionize the game around 3-point shooting.
NBA draft
The date of the NBA draft has been pushed from Oct. 16 to Nov. 18. The league said the revised date will allow additional time to conduct the pre-draft process, gather more information about the potential start date of the 2020-21 season and advance conversations between the NBA and the players association regarding collective bargaining agreement matters.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday the NBA will run the pre-draft process. A total of 85 players will drive to their nearest NBA market to receive medical, strength and agility testing at team facilities. Players will also participate in eight different shooting drills and 10-question interviews. Team personnel will not be involved in that process, but information will be distributed to all 30 teams.
The Kings have the No. 12 pick in the opening round of the draft. They also hold the No. 35, No. 43 and No. 52 picks.
Free agency
The NBA was planning to begin free agency Oct. 18 before the draft was pushed back. The new date has not been announced, but it will likely come shortly after the draft.
The Kings have $89 million in guaranteed salary for next season. They have an additional $28 million tied up in Bjelica’s non-guaranteed contract plus cap holds for Bogdanovic and their first-round draft pick. That puts them over the projected cap of $109.1 million but well under the luxury-tax threshold of $132.7 million. The Kings are expected to have the $9.3 million mid-level exception and a $3.6 million biannual exception to sign outside players.
Forward Jabari Parker will likely exercise a player option on his $6.5 million contract for next season before free agency begins. Kent Bazemore, Harry Giles III, Alex Len, Yogi Ferrell and Corey Brewer will be unrestricted free agents. Bogdanovic and DaQuan Jeffries will be restricted free agents.
This story was originally published September 17, 2020 at 2:48 PM.
