Sacramento Kings GM Scott Perry EXCLUSIVE Interview: Defining Team Identity Starting In Vegas

Sacramento Kings GM Scott Perry EXCLUSIVE Interview: Defining Team Identity Starting In Vegas

All right, sitting here with Sacramento Kings general manager Scott Perry. Scott, take thanks for taking the time out of your day, man. How’s uh how’s Vegas been treating you. It’s obviously got to be pretty good to see your summer league team sitting here at 40. Yeah, well, Vegas is Vegas. Been a couple years since I’ve been here. Uh but enjoying the time, getting to know everybody obviously with the staff and all the players on the roster and coaches and so far so good. It’s been a good week. Team has played very hard. Um we’ve won all the games as you’ve mentioned, but the biggest thing that has pleased me is just how hard we’ve played and how together we’ve played. Yeah, absolutely. And you’re seeing uh coach mystery do it with an identity, that defensive orientation. It’s a lot of the things we’ve heard you echo as well. Um and the big thing that you’ve mentioned is building that identity. How much is establishing that in the summer league, the first uh you know uh event since you’ve been able to take over already establishing that here now? Well, we talked about that at the onset of of this summer league. This group, this was the first opportunity to start laying the foundation for that identity, those six values that we talk about so much. Competitive, tough, team oriented, uh, disciplined, accountable, and professional. I’m seeing those qualities with our group both on and off the court. That’s extremely important to us. And so, uh, I’m proud of what we’ve been able to do thus far. Absolutely. And uh when you’re establishing those identities, the six things you’ve laid out, uh you know, can’t help you mention it in every single thing. Obviously, very key staple here. Um I was ready to be tested for what it’s worth. Okay. All right. Okay. Pass the test. There you go. Uh but what’s the process like for you in figuring out establishing what those six things are going to be? You spent a lot of time in the league. Is this something that you’ve held with you throughout the years or has it slowly developed over time to this point? I would say it’s been fine-tuned over the years, but a lot of these values are really at my core and what I believe in in terms of team building. Um I think when you examine very successful sports franchises, not just basketball ones, but football, baseball, you name the sport, uh a lot of these qualities that I talk about, these values exist in in those areas. And so you have to be committed to that to be able to live those every day. I think when you do that, you give yourself an opportunity to be successful over a longer period of time, right? So betting on the person in part of this because a lot of what you’re pointing to is the intangibles. Obviously there’s the basketball skill as well, but betting on that translating. Oh, there’s no question about it cuz look, most of the guys anyway when you get to this level have some measure of talent, you know, some skill whether they can run fast, jump high, shoot the ball well, defend well, whatever it may be. But the biggest separator I found over my 25 years in the NBA and 13 years prior to that in college coaching is the makeup of the person because that’s what endures over a 7 to n month season is those qualities. That’s what a person is going to have to lean them on. So, that’s what’s going to be the little little things that separate um when two guys are talented, people that have those six values and practice those every day, I believe, give you a little added advantage necessary to come out on top. Yeah. And obviously, you think the rookies uh play into that well. We’ve seen them uh playing well on the court out here as well, but what’s the, you know, can you take us behind the scenes a little bit in the process of when you’re trying to evaluate those things? Like we mentioned, intangibles. I think they can be a little bit harder to read into rather than just watching film. But what’s the process like for not only when you’re bringing guys in, but you’re inheriting a roster and looking at what you already have already and trying to figure out who fits what you’re looking for there? Yeah. Well, get a lot of that is time spent and through either conversation or observation and how they practice or play in games or just how they interact with coaches or teammates or front office. Uh it’s a constant learning to really figure out who really has those qualities. So I’m still in the process of determining that. Now as it relates to the rookies, there’s a lot of homework that goes in to drafting a player. Of course, we like their talent. We evaluated the talent, thought that they were good enough uh to be NBA players, but they in talking to a number of people that lived with them, been around them, mentored them, they all would say, “Hey, they exhibited a lot of those qualities and made us more comfortable in selecting them in the draft or in Dylan Carwell’s case, signing him as a two-way player.” Absolutely. And then you see, you know, already rostered guys like Demar, you never hear a bad thing about him. great locker room guy. How important is it to have those established guys that have already proven all that things that you’re saying to be that mentor for the younger players? It’s extremely important. And in my experience, the the best team that I obviously had been around for a number of years was Detroit Pistons back in the the 2000s. And what made us special and great at that time was the locker room and the the men that resided in that locker room because not only did the organization set a vision in the standard, they did themselves. They understood it and they carried it out. So now when you start to bring younger players in or other people into the locker room, it polices themselves. They they let the rookies know or the younger players know or anybody you may trade for know this is how we do business. So you mentioned a guy like Demar De Rozan who I’ve had tremendous amount of respect for over his career. I’ve watched him and I’ve watched him develop as a pro and every at every stop he’s been he’s been professional. He’s been accountable. He’s been disciplined. You know all those things we talk competitive, tough, team oriented. So now when he sits with Anique Clifford or Maxine Renault, uh his words are going to matter because he’s done it. He’s played and he that knowledge that he can share and others like him can share with the younger players but I believe helps equip them the the younger players to be successful uh as they move forward. Absolutely. And then uh we see Devin out here obviously playing well um dealing with some things a little bit but you know inheriting a guy like that obviously I’m sure that you were familiar with him throughout your own evaluation process when you were in New York but what have your impressions of him been and and how do you feel like he can continue to develop as a player moving him into that point guard spot a little bit? Yes, definitely continuing to learn Devin as well. uh you know he had a very defense, you know, be a defensive orientation as a player uh when he was at Providence. I think that’s what allowed him to be drafted where he was drafted. Uh and so I’m I want to see him continue to uh make that impact at this level. And I’ve always believed as a young player when you come in the door, you have to maximize your strengths. So, his strength is his ability to defend the basketball. He’s got long arms. He’s got good straight ahead speed. Uh, what I’ve liked from him in the summer league, too, he’s had some moments, especially on the offensive side, where he can really push the ball and attack the rim and get there uh with the ability to finish. He’s not a finished product there yet. He’s developing for sure and it’s going to be incumbent upon us and our coaching staff to help him develop and grow as a player in those areas that he’s not at quite as strong at yet. But he’s got to consistently defend and defend at a high level because that uh is the one thing that he can do to help our team and our organization have a chance at success. Yeah. which obviously fits into that defensive orientation that coach Dip is doing. You’re talking about um how much you know we’ve seen the league I’m sure you’ve seen it obviously change so much in the time you’ve been in here. It almost feels like uh you know I guess I can’t go quite back as far as you to be honest, but my perspective you see like um Houston and Golden State transitioning the game a little bit where it becomes more three-pointer oriented and then everybody adapts to that and then teams start to zag a little. How much do you keep up with like just the trends of the direction of the league and trying to, you know, counter that compared to playing your own game? Yeah. No, you definitely keep up with quote unquote the trends of the league, but I just believe you have to have a solid foundation and principles of what you believe what it takes to win. There’s multiple ways to win. So just okay if one team is shooting a ton of threes and they happen to win that year. But again when you talk about the Golden State Warriors when they were winning they had two of the best shooters of all time. Probably the best shooter of all time is Steph Curry and and Klay Thompson was right behind him but they were extremely effective in the two-point area as well. And what didn’t get talked about a lot with that group is they were a top 10 defense each of those years. So it all kind of goes hand in hand. So to me you we want to build our identity of who we are. We believe firmly that it is a winning recipe when you play it the right way and uh and then you just just own it. And so, uh, there’s, you know, there’s old saying like in boxing, styles make fights. And so, it’s no different in in in basketball or football or other sports, you know, uh, you might have a team that really likes to run, may have another team that likes to play half court. It’s who can play their game the best on a particular night or in the playoffs in a particular series that end up coming out on top. Yeah. And then obviously we mentioned like how you want your guys to play, the energy that you want out there, but um stylistically trying to figure it out. You mentioned it styles make fights gonna depend on what you have on the roster, but when you’re inheriting something, trying to build, how much are you, you know, there’s the current guys and how do we optimize what we got going on right now compared to, hey, we’re still working to build towards something. So, we’re going to try and mold things in a new direction. Well, I’ve said often about this year’s is really about building our identity. So, we’re gonna play to that identity. And you know, Doug, Christie, and I have very much aligned on that. I think you seen an early indication of how we’re going to want to play in summer league uh in terms of extending the floor defensively and allowing that type of effort and energy to create offensive uh opportunities and to be able to play faster offensively off of a an attacking defense, a swarming type defense. So that part uh is what we want to establish how we want to play and the guys on the roster uh we’re you know confident we’ll buy in and to that and so and we’ll continue as we watch and evaluate to make whatever necessary adjustments to the roster that we need to and that fullcourt pressure you’re seeing out here. There’s also defensive uh positional versatility especially with the rooker rookies you’re seeing here. Um, it feels like positions in general get a little bit muddied in the modern NBA. Like I’m curious, like when you’re talking about needing a point guard with Dennis Shruder, right? I think people have in their mind what a traditional point guard is, but is there um I guess like do you have a definition for that sort of role or are you more so looking for, hey, we need a distributor, we need this specific skill set? No, I look the point guard position even though it has evolved and how some of the guys play it still to me requires a lot of leadership and uh really a coach on the floor mentality and understanding of not only his role but all of the other players on the on the floor uh to be able to see the game, make decisions, you know, when to push it, maybe when to slow it up a little bit. He also is the initiator of your defense because because often times he’s going to be matched up with the primary ball handler from for most teams. So, uh that is still the the position is still hugely important. Uh even though how it’s played may have evolved some, you still can’t run away from the leadership that it requires. That’s why we went out and got a guy like Schroer who has exhibited that leadership, but he also exhibits that toughness. He’s a fearless competitor and and playing the position and that personality, you know, should resonate amongst his teammates and allow us again to start creating the style of play that we want to be known for in Sacramento. Yeah. And then when you look at positions sort of two to four there as well that feels like where there’s a lot of interchangeability in today’s league. How much do you differentiate all of them or just you know you need to be able to match up with what the other teams got out there? Look look obviously you got to be able to have some size to match up with different teams because the league is constantly getting bigger. U so that’s going to be important. It’s great, like you said, to be able to be versatile and guarding two through four or one through four allows your team to switch defensively effectively. Um, and so I’m just excited about again, I need to see the full roster together playing. So, before I get too much into the weeds and talking about, you know, what we look like, uh, I’ve I’ve seen this team from afar for the most part. And, uh, so I’m anxious for training camp to start and see Doug put his and his staff put their imprint on this group and get them to play, you know, the the Sacramento way, if you will, moving forward. Absolutely. And, uh, yeah, last thing I got for you, Scott, you know, just how has this process been for you? Was it fun to take over a new team? You got like you mentioned, you’re learning everybody, trying to turn things in a new direction. Is it an enjoyable process for you? A little stressful? No, it it’s it’s awesome. It’s I I really enjoy um coming into a new situation. Uh obviously I had some, you know, a little bit of familiarity with the community, obviously with the vet ownership and and and some of the people that that worked here. Uh so that made it even easier for me to come in and and get adjusted uh a little faster. But I I enjoy the building process and building something and and making it, you know, something that can become successful in the uh in the near future. So uh every morning I wake up happy about that and I have a lot of good people that are working with me cuz you can’t do it alone. That’s the most I my staff and you’ll hear me say this often. The staff is what makes or breaks, you know, leadership or, you know, success. And and I’ve, you know, we’re assembling a an excellent front office staff as we have uh with the coaching staff and uh the support staff in the building is awesome. And so that culture and those six things that applies that to that group as well, too. not to that’s to the players. And so that’s what makes me most excited, just getting everybody together and uh and everybody buying in to build something that we hope is going to be special. Absolutely. Well, thank you, Scott. Appreciate it, man. I know the city of Sacramento’s excited, man. All right. Bacon.

Sactown Sports Kings Insider Brenden Nunes sat down with Sacramento Kings GM Scott Perry to discuss his team’s dominant performance in the Las Vegas Summer League, the details of Perry’s team-building philosophies, the value of professional veterans on the roster, and much more!

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