Five offseason priorities for the Kings after another bitterly disappointing season

Another Kings season ended Thursday. A win against the rival Los Angeles Lakers wrapped things up, but there was no joy to be found in the meaningless victory played out primarily with bench units.

The 2019-20 season was the franchise’s 14th in a row without a playoff appearance. It was a failure by any honest evaluation.

On to the next one.

Here are five offseason priorities for the Kings:

1. RETAIN BOGDANOVIC

Bogdan Bogdanovic will be a restricted free agent this offseason. Any team can offer him any contract, up to the max, but the Kings will have the choice to match the terms and keep him. Sacramento can also agree to terms with him before another team makes a move, if the two parties can find common ground.

There is no complex analysis to be offered on this matter. The Kings absolutely must keep Bogdanovic on the roster. He is arguably the team’s second-best player. Losing talent is not a viable option for this franchise. Any genuine attempt to make the playoffs next season starts with locking him up.

2. HOPE GILES STAYS

While the Kings have some control over Bogdanovic’s future, they are very much at the mercy of Harry Giles III. The fan favorite could walk away from Sacramento forever. It didn’t have to be this way. Sacramento declined his one-year $4 million option for next season and now cannot offer him a dollar more than that amount for the coming season.

This was an unforced error for the Kings front office. Giles averaged 6.9 points on 55% shooting at just 22 years old. Even if he never panned out, that $4 million would have gone a long way toward buying goodwill with a fan base that is fed up with 14 years of failure. There have been seldom few players with his level of popularity in the last decade.

3. BAZEMORE AND LEN

The 2020 free agent class is very weak and the Kings have very little flexibility. Fortunately, there are two unrestricted free agents that Sacramento could re-sign while operating above the salary cap. Kent Bazemore and Alex Len made significant contributions during the team’s best stretch of the season.

Bazemore has definitely earned another contract with the Kings. His effort and leadership were there when many other players seemed checked out. A short term deal in the range of $5 million to $10 million seems logical. Len also played well in a limited role and should be retained if a modest contract is agreeable.

4. MID-LEVEL EXCEPTION

Unless major and unforeseen changes are made, the Kings will have very little room to bring in new free agents. The most likely scenario is that Sacramento will only have cap exceptions with which to sign outside players. The largest contract they would be able to offer is the mid-level exception, which is about $10 million per season.

The Kings must use this resource wisely, as it is their best path to adding talent in the short term. Forward Maurice Harkless, guard Kris Dunn, and big man Bobby Portis are three names that could be attainable. One major pitfall to avoid would be using the entire exception on a player past his prime. The Kings don’t need another Trevor Ariza situation.

5. DRAFT FOR UPSIDE

The Kings are not a role player away from being successful. They need a second star. With their current salary cap situation, that star is not coming in free agency. Safe prospects like Saddiq Bey and Aaron Nesmith looked great when the Kings were winning games in February. Now Sacramento may need to look for players who at least have a chance to be stars.

Players who are raw or have struggled in college may be more desirable. Patrick Williams needs a lot of refinement, but has tremendous potential. Cole Anthony has been sliding down every draft board, but he was once considered a likely No. 1 overall pick. The Kings should go with a high-risk-high-reward player on draft night.

OVERALL OUTLOOK

The Kings disappointed greatly this year. Unfortunately, there is very little reason for optimism this offseason. No new stars will be joining the roster for 2020-21. With virtually no cap space available, the best the Kings can do is limit their mistakes.

Keep the proven guys, sign a contributor on a moderate contract and big swing on a draft pick. That’s the best-case scenario for this team.

Even if everything breaks right, Sacramento could be looking at their most expensive roster in franchise history while still being serious underdogs to make the playoffs.