Sacramento Kings GM Monte McNair explains decision to opt out of NBA G League bubble
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The NBA announced Friday that 18 teams will participate in the 2021 G League season in a bubble environment at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando. The Stockton Kings will not be one of them.
Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair issued a statement explaining the organization’s decision, saying the team opted out of the G League season after careful consideration. McNair said Sacramento’s G League affiliate will resume play in Stockton when it is safe to do so.
“After a thorough analysis, we determined that the Stockton Kings will not participate in the 2021 NBA G League single-site format,” McNair said. “Given the pandemic and related health and safety protocols, the flexibility of having our full roster available in Sacramento is a priority relative to the expected reduced number of G League games available. Once past the current challenges, we look forward to returning to Stockton.”
The Stockton Kings have played home games at 12,000-seat Stockton Arena since 2018, when they relocated from Reno, where they were known as the Reno Bighorns. Dustin Toms, vice president of business operations for the Stockton Kings, said the team is eager to return to its waterfront arena.
“We are in close contact with the NBA regarding future plans to safely resume gameplay in home markets and remain committed to the Stockton community,” Toms said. “Once league health and safety protocols and state and local public health guidelines permit, we eagerly anticipate playing in front of our valued fans at Stockton Arena. Over the coming weeks and months, we will continue to support the 209 during these unprecedented times, both virtually and in a safe, physically distanced manner.”
The 18-team field at Disney World will include 17 G-League affiliates and the newly formed G League Ignite, a team of elite NBA Draft-eligible players. Schedules have not been announced, but the season will begin in February. The top eight teams will advance to a single-elimination playoff system.
“We worked closely with our teams, the Basketball Players Union, and public health experts to develop a structure that allows our teams to gather at a single site and safely play,” said NBA G League President Shareef Abdur-Rahim, who played for the Kings from 2005-08. “We are thrilled to get back to basketball and to fulfill our mission as a critical resource for the NBA in developing players, coaches, referees, athletic trainers and front-office staff.”
The Kings are one of 11 NBA franchises that chose not to send teams to the G League bubble. The others include the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks and Milwaukee Bucks. Teams that do not send teams to the G League bubble will have the ability to flex assign players to teams participating in the single-site format. Two-way contract players such as Kyle Guy and Chimezie Metu are now permitted to be active for 50 games during the NBA season, a move designed to increase roster flexibility amid the COVID-19 crisis.
The Kings view player development as a critical component of their coaching and performance strategies. The organization has a comprehensive development plan in place to maximize player improvement specifically for rookies and two-way contract players. This includes pregame and postgame work with player development coaches and staff to support conditioning for inactive players and those who do not reach a baseline for minutes per game.
