The Sacramento Kings now head into the second half of the NBA season and made no moves ahead of the All-Star break or any additions in the buyout market. Kings general manager Monte Mcnair cited “continuity” as a reason for the lack of moves.
“The continuity of the group is something we haven’t had as much of. We’ve had a lot of turnover lately, and now that we’ve had success, that (continuity) can be a big part of our stretch run as well,” McNair said.
However, while they didn’t shake up their roster for this season, Kings All-Stars De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis both made their pitch for a player to join the Kings this season at All-Star weekend’s media day. That player is Sasha Vezenkov.
Vezenkov’s draft rights were acquired as part of their deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers for Isaiah Mobley. Vezenkov is a 2-time MVP of the Greek League and one of the best players in Europe. His play has now caught the eye of Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox, who was open with his hopes that the 6-foot-9 big man joins the Kings.
“I’ve actually looked at a film of [Vezenkov],” Fox told reporters during All-Star weekend. “And it’s funny because I tell Keegan [Murray] this a lot, and I’m like, ‘Keegan, if we want to win the championship, at some point, you know, either you’re gonna be one of those guys, or we’re going to find on of those guys,’ because, at the end of the day, I think a lot of, like it’s an extremely, like, wing based league, where most of the time, you know, the better teams have, you know, one of the better wings in the league.
“So being able to see someone like him play and what he’s done in the Euro League is crazy. And it’s just how efficient that he’s playing. Obviously, we would love for him to come over and just add to our team; you know, I feel like you can never have a team that’s too deep.”
Not only does Fox say that Vezenkov can help the Kings contend for a championship, but he also lauded what a great fit the Bulgarian big man.
“I think [Vezenkov] would be a great fit,” Fox continued. “I’ve seen where he doesn’t dribble a lot. He’s a guy who can play out of the short, out of the mid-post. He shoots the ball extremely well. For one, if you can shoot the ball well in this league, there’s a spot for you, especially where you’re 6’7-6’8, and you can shoot the ball, there are a lot of spots for you in this league.”
Fox wasn’t the only one pining for Vezenkov to make his move to the NBA. Kings big man Damontas Sabonis also noted what a great fit Sasha would be on the Kings.
“Yes, I’ve watched him. He’s a great player, very talented. He’s playing great in Europe with Olympiacos. They’re doing amazing in EuroLeague. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but we obviously would love to have him here,” Sabonis said. He can shoot the ball. For us, the more shooters, the better for us”.
