End of an error: Marvin Bagley III saga ends after four star-crossed seasons in Sacramento
Marvin Bagley III has finally found a new home after four star-crossed seasons in Sacramento.
The Bagley saga came to an end Thursday when the Kings agreed to send him to the Detroit Pistons in a four-team trade involving the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers. Former Kings general manager Vlade Divac erred in selecting Bagley with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NBA draft, but Monte McNair absolved the organization of that mistake with a deal that will bring Donte DiVincenzo, Josh Jackson and Trey Lyles to Sacramento.
Bagley came out of Duke with a world of potential when the Kings selected him over Luka Doncic, but injuries have stunted a once-promising career. While Doncic has emerged as a generational talent with three All-Star appearances and two All-NBA First Team selections, Bagley has appeared in only 148 of 283 games for the Kings, missing time due to numerous injuries and a case of COVID-19.
Bagley averaged 13.5 points and 7.4 rebounds in four seasons with the Kings. He was an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection in 2019 after averaging 14.9 points and 7.6 rebounds in 62 games, but this season he is averaging 9.3 points while shooting a career-low 46.3% from the field and 24.2% from 3-point range.
Family drama further complicated the situation in Sacramento with Bagley’s father, Marvin Bagley Jr., taking shots at former coaches Dave Joerger and Luke Walton while trolling the team on social media. He even issued a public trade request on Twitter in January 2020.
“@SacramentoKings PLEASE trade Marvin Bagley III ASAP!” Marvin Bagley II wrote, signing the tweet “Love - Coach Bagley.”
The ill-fated relationship between Bagley and the Kings took another ugly turn in October when his agent ripped the organization for mismanaging his client after the team declined to offer him a rookie-scale contract extension. Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management released a strongly-worded statement 24 hours after the deadline for Bagley’s extension passed without even a whisper of a new deal.
Schwartz revealed the Kings had told Bagley he would not be part of the team’s rotation to start the season. Schwartz also said the Kings passed on potential trades involving Bagley over the past year because they weren’t satisfied with the returns.
“Sacramento has informed Marvin Bagley he is not in the opening night rotation, which is completely baffling,” Schwartz said. “It’s clear they have no plans for him in the future, and yet, passed on potential deals at last year’s deadline and this summer based on ‘value.’ Instead, they chose to bring him back but not play him, a move completely contradictory to their ‘value’ argument. This is a case study in mismanagement by the Kings organization.”
Now, Bagley will get a new opportunity with another organization. His father took to social media again Thursday, posting a photo to his Instagram story with two No. 35 Pistons jerseys and the words: “@MB3FIVE is headed to Motown!”
This story was originally published February 10, 2022 at 1:14 PM.
