Sam Amick recaps Kings trade deadline & what went down around NBA

Sam Amick recaps Kings trade deadline & what went down around NBA

Well the trade deadline is all over it’s in the book so why not break it down with one of our favorites from the athletic you can also hear him on the athletic podcast feed the one and only Sam amck how you doing Sam good morning guys I’m doing good I mean it’s it’s

Post trade deadline day um not as exciting as we thought but there’s always like this you know on the other side of the mountain type feeling so I’m good I’m hanging in how are you guys you know what’s funny he says not as exciting as as we thought and I don’t

Know if it’s just because we’re like NBA nerds and I’m sure I’m sure in some ways you feel this too like that there’s still a lot of movement around the NBA even though they were tweaks even though we didn’t have all the fireworks but I felt like a lot of the fireworks came

Early on in the season and then yesterday though a lot of a lot of benefits to those those are like Piccolo pets if you’re fireworks early Piccolo pets yesterday maybe or sparklers Piccolo pedes are good you know little you know the the Snappers for the kids if you want to go you know

No I agree I mean it’s funny because um it’s I always like I tell people that okay you look to like fans they look to us to tell them what’s happening right um and then I shouldn’t admit this from my own like job security but like people

Have to realize you know we end up really understanding you know maybe 5% of what’s Happening behind the scenes which is to say that for me covering it trade deadline day does become a bit of like okay we think we have a beat on this situation that situation but you

Know there’s a bunch that might just come out of nowhere and shock you you know this is not a trade deadline day example but like when Damien Lillard got traded to Milwaukee there were like maybe a tiny bit of chatter about that but by and large people were stunned and

So even though we cover this stuff all the time you know that that could happen so on trade deadline day you’re thinking maybe that’ll happen um it just didn’t this time around and it did you know I used the word anticlimactic in my column uh even admittedly as a bit of a

Smartass had cited like the dictionary.com definition of it and and asked a bunch of fan bases if it landed and resonated because you know the five were and we’ll get into it but like you know your kings were on there with Bulls Hawks Warriors Lakers and these are just

Like regardless of what trades you think they should have done that that gap between the expectation of the fan base and the type of activity they might be ready for and then what ultimately actually happens you know creates that kind of anticlimactic uh finish and that was really kind of the what happened

Yesterday yeah I was I clear my throat I don’t know why um topic for you I get it yeah you know it I felt like the Kings needed to do something I wasn’t expecting some big type of Swing I feel like those moves have already been made right seaka OG

Got moved what do you think the king’s approach to the deadline was and why do you think they’re maybe comfortable standing Pat I this is not what the deu and mopod wants to hear I want to hear the truth tell us no I’m still trying to learn

About the truth all like I I don’t to toally get it if um there was a pivot it seems I don’t know the timeline but you know teams that had talk to them had come out you know all through the process with the takeaway that as you

Guys know it was Fox zonis Murray don’t even bring him up everybody else up for grabs you know the human component within that is like all right so now Kevin herder Harrison Barnes Davon Mitchell they go to bed every night thinking you know I might be moved and

And you you obviously the rest of the guys as well but then at the end and I’m talking trade deadline day you know and when the phones were still hopping the way it was put to me was like no it’s based on the market and based on what

They saw available it had literally become like a we’re not going to touch the top seven approach I mean it’s a big number right like a really big number and so that speaks to what you know sort of possibilities they saw out there and and my one of my least favorite parts of

The job is that you you know we are we analyze we criticize we praise and you know you’re trying to do the best you can without all of the information and that’s just being honest about it like if you want to look at Roy O’Neal and Brooklyn who I think probably tops the

List of players that Kings fans and basketball fans say would have helped the Kings I don’t like I can’t tell you with total Clarity what it might have taken for them to get him why they weren’t able to pull that off you look at the way he went to Phoenix it was a

Pretty complicated three- team deal where if you’re trying to look for reasons to be understanding of the Kings you look at that and you say you know sometimes there’s a whole thing happening over here that you’re just not in on and it’s hard to get in on it like

That was a complicated deal with a fair amount of assets going in multiple directions that led to Royce O’Neal being on the Suns the Suns have I think a different level of desperation to to add help if you if you were assessing the Suns and the Kings to get a guy like

Rose O’Neil uh just on balance I think Phoenix is gonna win that competition because Kevin Durant is the age he is Bradley Beal is the age and health you know history that he is they have no depth um their defense has been mediocre so a lot of the same themes of the Kings

Except for the Age part and and Phoenix got it done so uh I don’t blame Kings fans at all for just being disappointed that there were no moves uh I just would love to learn more about what was really you know doable I want to go back to something you said

You said something about the top seven approach I’m not going to touch that what do you mean by that uh just that like when Trey deadline day came and and the calls were coming in that it was like there was literally it seemed as if there was nobody available to them that they

Deemed worthy of losing anybody in their top seven um you know so Le obviously being first guy off the bench are we going Trey from there like who’s seven on this team right I mean that’s that I’d say Trey at this point yeah um so that you know with the starting five was

Like like if if Royce O’Neal cost you a top seven player well you know we like what we have enough that we don’t want to lose that that also makes me wonder um I had I had had somebody tell me recently that um that one of the

High-profile guys uh I don’t want to put his business out there but like that that you know like this front office is smart you got to talk to your players that they had gone to one of the King’s top guys and I probably went to both of

Them and said what do you think about this guy and so they’re they’re having those conversations right um and the part I don’t mind sharing this part the part where I was confused is that it was Kyle kosma and this is like you know maybe a month ago um and so there was

Like an internal debate about how would kozma fit in um well that became something that they didn’t want to do um but it also knowing that that is the type of dialogue they have it made me wonder yesterday like okay like I’m assuming the whole top seven thing is is

Probably at least partially born out of the core guys saying I believe in Kevin I believe in Harrison I believe in you know Trey I believe in Malik I mean Malik’s got his own lane because of his relationship with the Aaron and and whatnot um so you know it’s but it is

Admittedly just objectively hard to reconcile that with what I’m personally seeing on the court like it’s you know they they they just got smacked by the Pistons um they it’s crazy I keep saying this you guys know like you know the history of the organization is such that

Like if I was a Kings fan I would just be choosing to just have fun because they’re winning games you know what I mean like they might be in the playoffs that hadn’t happened in 16 years but that’s as you guys know better than anybody that’s not the mood right now

The mood is how does our team get out of the first round how do we get better um and if that’s the calculus in the debate you know we don’t have evidence right now that they they look real capable of doing that you know I I think the other

Thing that I heard from some people yesterday is that uh everything around the league seemed extra expensive you know like even if it was I I know the Hawks said Deonte Murray was off the table and everything but from leading up to that it was seemed like it was going to take

Multiple first round picks and then even when teams might have been talking about Alex Caruso with the Chicago Bulls it would seemed like it was going to take first round picks and just too much and so I kept hearing everything is too expensive and you know you talk about

The kings in those top seven guys and maybe feeling like they believe in them do you feel like that was just the pulse of yesterday like going there were so many sellers that were like dangling things in front of people being like uhuh you have to give up your first born

100% I actually I really do that’s a good point Morgan um and it’s funny because it even like the if you look at the format of the story I did which I’d never done something like that before but there was this it was kind of easy to package these five teams that people

Thought were going to make moves and they didn’t now the distinction and the Nuance within that packaging again you know Kings Bulls Hawks Lakers Warriors is that if I’m actually being critical of the teams that didn’t make moves it’s bulls and Hawks and then it’s everybody

Else um like so to your point I don’t understand why the Bulls um looked at it and said like there literally was a report that they were having conversations about Caruso where they indicated that they might want more than two first round picks like what are we

Doing here so you know you don’t you have Kobe white who’s a wonderful part of your future Patrick Williams on the last year of his deal Lonzo ball on the shelf for a long time um Alex Caruso is on a wonderful contract but there’s an 18month window you know he’s not part of

Your future most likely and you had a great opportunity to get something for him he chose not to Demar de Rosen is going to be a free agent this summer now he might actually resign that could happen he likes it there wow but they’re gonna really have to pay him and so that

I mean again like I’m talking like deard is he he’s kind of like I don’t care about my age to pay me for what I’m producing um and you know especially man LeBron’s making everybody money right now because if you’re 34 you could be like hey this dude out here doing

It um so to your point about the price tags it was bulls and Hawks setting the market the Raptors ended up doing stuff right like not on Deadline day but they did break up their core um and and their prices were I think more reasonable you

Know the Pacers give up three first for cakam but they also have what appears to be some you know a handshake deal that he’ll return so that’s a long-term investment um yeah the Bulls and Hawks just asking for the moon uh was a factor

And I I will say I guess in a little fairness to the Hawks um I’m focusing more on Clint capella and DeAndre Hunter bogdon bogdanovich than I am Murray I actually I understand why like if you look at Murray in the Lakers deal and you say a 2029 first maybe a first round

Pick swap Jaylen Hood chafino um and then D’Angelo Russell coming back when you and it’s hard for them to to think this way but when you gave up uh three first and a first round swap to get Murray in the first place those two offers are just world’s part

So I I have some understanding for why Atlanta held steady they’ve got multiple years on deon’s contract they have time there but the rest of it they had pieces that could have yielded them something but like a lot of these teams appear to be a little delusional about what’s

Worth holding on to it just irritates me from the outside looking in with some of these teams because I I don’t know I get the impression that nowadays it seems like some front offices want to win the deal instead of making a deal like they

Just want to be like no no they want to be a able to at the end of it be like hey look go to their owner and show look everyone’s talking about us we won the the trade today as opposed to just like no let’s just make a deal to improve our

Situation or our Outlook going forward I agree it’s it’s funny because um in Vegas for the inseason tournament um I ran into Kevin Pritchard the Pacers GM and he’s just a guy who’s done it for a long time did it in Portland in Indiana uh is is pretty respect Ed as an

Executive learned under Larry Bird in Indiana um and then you know for the Sacramento crowd’s purposes you know was obviously a key figure in the sabonis Alberton trade and talk to him about that trade a bit and he he had like such a a a mature uh perspective on that trade

Being a win-win for both sides and that’s kind of what you’re talking about is like that did not strike me as a guy who’s running around saying you know to to uh to his owner um you know hey I won the deal he’s just he’s been doing this

Long enough that it’s okay to have win-win deals and that is the people who work that way I think typically can get business done uh more effectively more consistently um I don’t know who comes to mind as like the the poster child for that sentiment in this trade deadline I

Mean you’ve got people like you know I think it might not necessarily just be about you know that many people trying to win it it’s maybe a little like Landry Fields comes to mind the Hawks GM you know you were the assistant GM under Travis schlank before Travis had a bad

Falling out with Atlanta you get the job um you know they they added um Chris Grant to the hawk front office an experienced executive sometime ago and there’s another voice in the room I don’t know exactly where I’m going with this but a young guy like Landry who had

A good playing career and is now a young executive is he’s GNA have have to pay attention to what his owner wants thinks and there just a little maybe a little muddled with Direction and voice and and choices in that type of an environment um the Bulls thing to keep you know

Focusing on those two teams that chose not to do much and they kind of controlled the market in large part you know Ura carnus um first time GM from Denver but more importantly and I I just said this on a different pod um like Jerry reinsdorf is 80 s years old the Bull’s

Owner and you know it seems real obvious and I’m admittedly stealing this perspective from the the legendary Michael wilbon on ESPN yesterday and Mike with his Chicago Roots talked about how Ry dorf you know you’re 87 you don’t have time or energy to rebuild you just

Want to watch your team have some fun you know and and the building is still full and you’re making money and you got six trophies in your case um you know I’m not you know I don’t want to lose dear the Rosen he’s fun to watch um I

Don’t want to lose Alex Caruso that guy gets after it on both ends of the floor so there’s all these factors that come in on a day like that it’s crazy to just put it that way hey the boss wants to see this so it’s happening this is what

Hey he’s ENT I mean he’s entertained right now and he’s old we’re going to keep this going um I want to go back to the real sorry real to Tai B on it like Indiana had that um for a long long time and I honestly cannot believe that I’m

Blanking on the Pacers owner her Simon is that herb Simon I kept want to say herb Cole that’s the old Bucks owner yes thank you but herb Simon’s not a young man and that the Pacers had been Towing the line in the middle for a long time

With the same sort of chatter that that in that market where folks just like basketball they don’t necessarily need to be in the Conference Finals or the finals sure it was fun when Reggie Miller did it and Paul George was pushing the the Miami Heat and

Everything but you do for sure I mean you guys know this look look at the king’s franchise and the way that the malfs and then VC rad have impacted roster decisions at different times um it’s absolutely a factor I want to go back to the kozma thing that you’re

Talking about with Sacramento because it seemed like at one point a couple years ago Monty McNair almost executed a trade with Buddy hee going to the Lakers kzo would have come to Sacramento that ends up falling apart at the last minute because Westbrook ends up coming to La

Instead that deal just gets blown up so they’ve been tied to kozma even during free agency there was talk like oh the Kings have interest in Kyle kozma he elects to go back to Washington and now we get past the trade deadline it sounds like oh the Kings didn’t have any

Interest in kozma I I I’m wondering like what changed was it the cost that what was it the price tag was it they they watched him play in Washington the last year and a half and maybe feel differently now what what do you think changed so uh the ones watching on

YouTube can see that I’m typing I’m cheating and pulling up koz’s uh basketball reference profile here to partially answer the question um I do think I mean the first comment I’ll make is that um agree or disagree this front office is prioritizing shooting Above All Else and Surround sabonis and

Fox with Shooters uh now those guys have not been hitting the shots like they did last year this year with with herder and Barnes and whatnot um but that remains a major priority and czz now this part hasn’t really changed so to your point I think I think maybe strategy has changed

More than CZ has changed uh but he’s shooting at a 33.1% clip from distance this year at High volume you know 6.8 three points uh three-pointers attempted per game and you know 33 is not efficient 33 is you know is Buddy heal on a bad year um and I think that’s it

Um they they didn’t see that as worthy of uh the contract um and just didn’t didn’t want the guy anymore it’s it’s confusing because like it does appear to like it shifted pretty significantly um like at the end they were almost kind of really tired of hearing them be attached to that

Situation and wondering why that continued to get reported um but yeah I think the shooting element is the big thing that you know that that if if you’re looking at job description of players the Kings you’re thinking of adding right now that maybe even above not maybe I mean their defense needs

Help but they appear to be focused more on shooting than the defensive side of the ball so they didn’t see value in Kyle kosma but they saw value in cash considerations yesterday and um that was that was the move that we saw for the Sacramento Kings and you know I think

The biggest thing maybe even for fans Sam if you can explain wh why would the Kings be willing to even help out the Bucks in that situation I I I haven’t looked at all the I mean I haven’t broken that one down it’s I you know I’m assuming it’s

Just the the Bucks create a list of teams you know with a roster spot where they can get rid of a guy and do something that the Bucks aren’t able to do uh on their own and they’re willing you know for tax purposes on the buck side you know I don’t remember Robin’s

Number but like it’s if they hold on to him it’s GNA cost them x amount over and above his contract because of the significant tax reifications and then the kings are doing them a solid by taking him but the cash considerations which I don’t think that any nobody

Really reported how much cash it was did they no I haven’t seen it yeah I mean that and that I if I was a front office guy uh or person I would um I would petition the league like are there certain trades that we can just not announce

Like please I said the same thing to morg like this is one where you’re just like why come on let’s just let if Robin Lopez wants to tell his friends and family like what happened that’s fine you know but because it just does create this it’s not only like not only did you

Do nothing but you you had your hat out and you were begging at 1158 that deal comes out too you know it’s like right before the oh the Cake’s made it trade Robin Lopez or wait what and one other note as we’re recording this the Kings did convert Keon Ellis’s deal from a

Two-way contract to a standard contract I don’t know did some of that money help pay for that too okay um you know we’ll talk again about it I’ll try to I mean in the cash sometimes I wish I had a good example that comes to mind but

Every once in a while you know I remember hearing about different moves that like you’d hear how much cash it was and sometimes as fans of media we’re all all we care about is what happens on the court but like this is real life too right so if the Bucks were like we’ll

Give you $7 million to take Robin Lopez well this is a business why would they say no to that if yeah Sam that but I also I always you know you always say how you know 5% of this and that going on and everything and I always on

Especially on NBA trade deadline day I’m asking Duce the whole time I go well what’s their relationship with some of these organizations some of these people behind the scenes and I mean something like this you got to imagine too if you help each other out and all those things

You you build that relationship with an organization like the bucks for future maybe future situations you do yeah absolutely um you know it makes me think of the old days um Jeff Petri when he was running the Kings like if you studied his transaction history he did a lot of

Business with the Atlanta Hawks um and that was I man I think was that Billy King uh was the GM at the time you know but you had relationships where and Jeff in particular I was a always struck me as like a very Discerning untrusting executive like where in his mind he woke

Up in the morning thinking did 70% of the league is kind of snake oil salesman trying to get over on me in a trade but these other guys like we talked about earlier um maybe I’ll gravitate towards them to do business and so he would do a

Lot of business with Atlanta um those relationships do matter I mean it’s why yesterday it shocked this this is a little bit in the same category but shocked everybody when the Bucks got Pat Beverly from Philly because that’s got all kinds of layers to it like wait a

Minute so Daryl Mor the head of the Sixers front office fired Doc Rivers last year that created acrimony that doc actually spoke about on national television and took shots at Daryl Doc is now the coach in Milwaukee um but they’re gonna give him a pretty decent Defender because their

Defense is terrible like you know help me understand the human dynamics there um so yeah I mean that part I always love covering about the league but it it does maybe sometimes Grease the wheels you know the Bucks will remember that the Kings you know helped him out a

Little bit and uh and so that Vibe could be a little bit different so if the kings were just trying to go for rooll guys yesterday you reported some names you mentioned D Wright who the Kings you know had a couple of years back you mentioned Caleb Martin as a name Royce

O’Neal Dorian finy Smith I guess going back to Morgan’s Point that the cost there was just too much it was hey we want one of your top seven and picks yeah I mean that’s you know again I wish I had more for you guys on that

Front that’s that’s it is is the top seven as far as kind of like breaking down why this stuff didn’t happen I’m assuming you know the each of those opportunities infringed on their other priorities that they deemed you know more worthy than that um it does feel

Like there is maybe and this is kind of a informed speculation but maybe kind of a a two trck thing happening here um greater belief in what they currently have than we anticipated based on what they accomplished last year um in in the way they feel about right here and now

You know even with things like the Pistons loss uh I’m curious to talk to Mike Brown because you know like a coach every coach in the league post trade deadline especially when you have talent on your team which he is lucky enough to have some good talent like I think a

Coach probably gets real excited this time of year because you get to have the noise totally gone about the trade deadline and players wondering if their families are going to get moved and and that part always gets overlooked right like you know people are like oh they

Make so much money they still try to go to bed at night they still only got you know 16 hours in the day to get their work done and if they think that their kids are going to be in school you know one day and in a different school the

Next that matters and does that affect literally you know the way you’re you’re fighting through a screen or the way you’re you’re going up for a jumper uh only those players know so post trade deadline that stuff is more settling um like Damen Lillard comes to mind this is

Super random admittedly but like Dame gave a really good interview recently to to my buddy Vinnie Goodwill from Yahoo sports talking about how he’s going through a divorce and how like his mind is just not clear and how people say that the court is a sanctuary where you

Leave your problems at the door and that he wasn’t feeling that this season that he was actually in his head on the court because of real life that’s an extreme example because he chose to share what’s going on in his life but like the trade deadline has that kind of effect on a

Lot of players so now the Kings have who they have um they have this pretty incredible fan base behind them that is you know try going to be out there they they’re going to games you know the energy could very very easily swing in a very positive direction here if they put

A run together um and as you guys remember that’s what they did last year you know I I remember going into the All-Star break uh last year for Salt Lake City and and our guy Anthony Slater who you know well like we had this funny running dialogue where like we would

Debate the Kings privately what we thought and he was always like Mr rosecolor glasses and I even when they were like winning five six in a row I was like no stop it like the floor is going to fall out because that’s what I’m trained to believe based on my

History and he’s looking at it a little more cleare eyed because he’s not you know he’s not been you know watching what I’ve been watching so closely all these years so all of which is to say like this team could still do it um I don’t know what direction you guys want

To go from here but I do think defensively man it’s just it’s I don’t know what it is like they just cannot get stops you know um sabonis particular real quick like sabonis having such a great year I I’m out of here on Twitter saying the dude should

Have been an Allstar and getting killed for by Laker Nation um and I believe it but like that the defensive stuff with sabonis is it’s just tricky because Rim defense is a problem obviously it starts on the wings you know uh even Fox who made great strides defensively has not

Been quite the head of the snake that that we thought he was going to become um that just remains a major problem yeah I I think with the sabonis thing like there’s just limitations here I mean he for as strong as he is he’s not the longest right like he’s not going to

Be blocking shots left and right you’re you’re banking on his verticality the pick and roll coverage like a lot of times man I I I don’t I don’t put the blame on the defense with sabonis he has shortcomings but it to me it’s about the guards defending and dearen as he’s made

A lot of strides and when he’s locked in it looks great but Luke LS was just saying the other day they had to challenge him after the Miami game like hey we lock in we need something he responded with a ton of deflections over the next couple of games and 11 steals

In two games but it’s consistency there and I think they get torched on the perimeter I think herder gets exposed at times well and that’s what I was going to say I mean the pressure and the resistance along the perimeter Sam and I feel like on top of all of that now

We’re looking at a league that you know just keeps evolving with the way that it shoots the hell lot of the basketball and if you have guys making one mistake coming under screen not understanding the Personnel or someone has the hot hand and it’s Alec freaking Burks out

There along the three-point line you know are you closing him out the right way are you running him off the line when he has that hot hand I feel like all these little things they they keep happening with this king’s team that where there’s not any Elite individual

Defenders so you have to do everything perfect as a team to help one another out to really see that defense complete and that’s why I guess I just don’t completely put that blame on sabonis like so many people around the league want to do yeah because I think he his

Effort is always there like if there’s one thing you know with sabonis like he’s going to play hard he’s going to play his ass off it doesn’t matter like even against the Pistons you’re not looking at sabonis going he didn’t bring it tonight you know no I mean he he his competitiveness

His next level this is a a massive reach admittedly but uh I was watching the Kobe Bryant statue unveiling yesterday and he had after it I don’t know if you guys saw NBA TV had a cool um documentary on his 81o game and he was doing this in his hotel room interview

With uh the legendary Andy Thompson who people don’t realize how awesomest dude is at his job this is Klay Thompson’s Uncle Michael Thompson’s brother who is the uh the goat of video documentary folks uh he he shot the last dance and he was in Kobe’s hotel room right

Interviewing him about the 81o game and Kobe’s talking about um that night against Toronto and LA and how they actually I think when he got up to 50 or 60 they were still trailing in the game and that he’s like we just can’t lose to this Raptor team and the competitiveness

Was on a huge level all of which is to say I I actually made me think of sabonis in the Detroit game where you don’t question like he actually is an incredibly competitive guy and and he was trying to will his team to win that game it just didn’t

Work and you know I agree that he’s I’m not pointing the finger at him on many nights uh but defense is is such a nuanced mysterious thing it really is like Milwaukee last night gets smoked I forget who they played but they gave up like 128 or something and uh and Dam

Lillard didn’t play and I had a thought there like oh I can’t blame Dame tonight you know like like out there Brook Lopez is out there now Middleton didn’t play either but you know that that whole Five Guys on a string stuff is real um I

Don’t know what the Kings have to do to fix it but unfortunately for them like this season is going to be sunk if they don’t figure that end of the floor out that that’s okay so do you after NBA trade deadline you you see the Lakers didn’t really do anything I know the

Buyout markets coming up all those things the the Warriors are wherever do you still see this Kings team in the Western Conference as a top six team I think they could be I mean I don’t top six is is the perfect framing for it Morgan because I mean if I again

If we’re going Vegas here betting man style like I’m probably gonna say no um because of the strength of five and six and I’m now cheating to look at the standings I mean you’ve got the Mavs first of all in the eighth spot who just got Kyrie Irving back and Mike get

Spencer Den witty um they are a threat the Pelicans are playing good ball one four in a row you they’re in the six spot the Suns I think are going to continue Rising pun intended and the kings are GNA be fighting for to be in that group um so it’ll be hard could

They do it sure you know again betting man I’m gonna say no uh and I think the truth is about what they should do I don’t know like I hear we are focusing on the defense I mean is the answer just recapturing and even greater level of

Offense like they did last season and taking the ball out of the basket you know for the opposing defense more consistently and having your defense be Set uh because you’re you’re performing at a higher level offensively that might be it honestly like they have not had uh

I don’t have it in front of me but they’re they’re nowhere near uh the offensive ranking they had last year when they led the league had a historic Mark they have been top half of the League this year but but not uh Elite by any means so may that that could be it

You know get to your your better looks more consistently hit your shots um defense is always easier when when the opponent is is having to take that ball out of the basket yeah I think that’s the biggest thing is in some ways there have been better defensive moments from

This group this year but the offense isn’t where it was last year and then leag around the league everybody’s offense is better like the Kings had the number one offensive reading in history I always thought that was overblown because uh the Mavs had the number one offensive rating in NBA history the year

Before that it’s just where things are headed in this league and now you’ve got multiple teams in the league who have surpassed what Sacramento did last year offensively Indiana Milwaukee it’s crazy to think about that um I just think the defensive I don’t know it’s just going

To be up and down because I don’t think they have the appropriate personnel they are banking on a second-year player in Murray to check some of the best players in the league that’s a lot to ask from him right to hey go deal with Donovan Mitchell go deal with kawhai Steph it’s

A lot and I think it’s impacted Keegan offensively a bit too so it I think it’s going to be a challenge I in some ways I think you’re right it’s the offense needs to be better down the stretch and they could get that mojo back a little

Bit because even though their record is around the same as it was at this point last year it definitely feels different so they are 14th in offense right now and they’re their mark from last year that was the best of all time this is just wild I’m sure you guys know this

They 18.6 points per one possessions was the mark last year if that was this year let’s see what three four five six seven eight uh how what did I say the Mark was 186 yeah uh they would I think I’m counting this right I believe they’d be ninth that’s insane that’s

Insane yeah so yeah the League’s offense is that’s a separate conversation it’s at a totally different level right now they’re not a good def team offense has dipped to build off what you said Douce they don’t have like they just have this good formula but it’s it’s this somewhat

Imperfect flawed formula because I love watching Keegan defend yeah but then if you know Harrison is so inconsistent even when he does get opportunities so if Harrison is just not hitting his shots that night like it’s it’s a little challenging to tell Keegan hey tonight

Why don’t we just lock in on defense let the offense take what they give you but lock in on defense and then it’s like second quarter hey hb’s like 0 for six can we go ahead and pivot here like can you Keegan can you start scoring a

Little more like the the roller coaster El is is hard and then within that too and I don’t have these numbers in front of me but Fox is just not lighting it up from long range like he was early on it’s dip big time yeah and and that part

Matters as you you know you’re trying to get your offense to a to a better level last thing I I think just to sum up this king’s trade deadline and just kind of where they’re going I think they’re banking on in my opinion where they’re comfortable with I think they tried to

Make a move obviously like you report Ed that if they make the playoffs this year that pick that they owe Atlanta top 14 protected conveys then it allows them the flexibility to trade the 25 26 27 20 it it gives them more options next

Summer to take a big swing if there is a big star maybe they go you know what we’ll go ahead and throw three first and some pick swaps in a player and see if we can get in the running for I don’t know some star player that somehow

Becomes available but now you’re going you better make the playoffs because if that pick does not convey this year then you’re still kind of in this world where you can’t move picks as easily as others yeah no that’s a major priority and that I mean I I understand the

Scrutiny about their tread deadline but that alone for me if you’re Joe Blow Kings fan or or or you know is like I I’m pretty confident saying that like if there was somebody out there that was going to help them get in the playoffs this year they would have gone ahead and

And done it and and it’s hard to speak on what the market looked like and who was available but the incentive was there um now I have heard some sentiment that Hey listen you know if we got to go to plan B and unfortunately don’t and

You know don’t get the wrong idea they want to make the playoffs badly but that this is not considered a good draft but there’s confidence that you know they do their job scouting wise they can find a good guy you know late in the draft but

That’s not ideal you don’t want to be doing that it’s a little bit analogous to to the Lakers and uh they choose to stand Pat at this deadline as well uh for you know and might have similar opportunities ahead of them this Summer uh as a result they they can trade three

First this summer and they’re basically trying to tell LeBron like hey be patient even though you’re you’re old as dirt um but you know we can get a star this summer with three first and that’s kind of their strategy and that but that matters the Kings the Kings have I will

Say man I I I I get for Kings fans that right now maybe it’s frustrating um but just look at Atlanta to learn as a cautionary tale what it looks like when you jump too early when you make the move too quick the dejonte Murray trade

Two years ago was a bad mistake and they now I mean really if I ask you right now what is Trey Young’s Legacy going to be in Atlanta uh in terms of the track that it is currently on a lot of fun highlights but if I like does anybody

Expect him to contend in Atlanta because really they jumped too early and Deonte wasn’t the guy and now they’re almost being stubborn not wanting to give him up because they’re not getting enough back you know now your timelines are off now your building roster wise is off um

You know there’s the Kings still have a lot of powder available to them uh and and then right now they just got to make what they can of this season patience is important at times it’s so hard though people especially in this era Sam we appreciate the time as always man and uh

I’m sure we’ll be seeing you soon thanks guys appreciate it one and only Sam am they tell you what they know dece and mo deuce and mo deuce the podcast that you know

Deuce and Mo dropped a bonus podcast with The Athletic’s Sam Amick to discuss the aftermath of the deadline, the cost of getting a deal done, the Kings approach at the deadline, why they moved the trade with Milwaukee, if they can stay in the top 8, the thirst for more shooting and looking ahead to how they go about the summer.

0:00-Sam Amick joins the pod to talk deadline
3:00-The Kings approach to deadline & why they stood pat
8:54-The cost of getting a deal
13:10-Do too many GMs try to WIN a deal?
17:17-How Kings felt about Kyle Kuzma
20:10-Why the Kings helped out the Bucks
24:36-Can the Kings swing in a positive direction?
28:30-The Kings defensive issues
32:57-Can Kings be a top 6 team in West?
37:48-Will the Kings make a big swing this summer?

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