Monte McNair is out as the Sacramento Kings’ GM. The two sides reached a mutual agreement to part ways.

The Kings’ season ended on Wednesday in a 120-106 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the play-in. McNair was relieved of his duties hours after the game.

McNair has been the GM of the Kings since 2020. In 2023, he was named NBA executive of the year following a 48-win season by the Kings and their first playoff appearance in 16 years.

The Kings have also won 40 or more games in three straight years. They had not won 40 games in any season until the streak since 2005-2006.

Just two years later, he’s looking for a new job.

Tensions in the front office were rising, according to a report from The Athletic. Former Kings head coach Mike Brown was dismissed in the middle of the season, a decision that McNair was reportedly against.

The decision created tension between McNair and owner Vivek Ranadive, leading to McNair’s departure.

The Kings finished the season 40-42 and are looking forward to building around a new head coach and GM for the 2026 NBA season.

The Sacramento Kings are expected to begin discussing a possible De’Aaron Fox trade as the Feb. 6 deadline approaches.

The All-Star point guard is in the final year of his contract and is set to enter free agency in the summer of 2026.

Fox, an All-NBA selection in 2022-23, is expected to have many suitors, but sources believe he has a preferred destination in mind before hitting free agency. As per Kings reporter James Ham, the Spurs are thought to be the likely destination.

Throughout the league, San Antonio has been widely considered the likely landing spot for Fox, particularly with the potential of being paired alongside Victor Wembanyama.

It was reported last month that his agent, Rich Paul, met with Kings general manager Monte McNair and assistant GM Wes Wilcox to discuss the point guard’s future.

After Fox declined extension offers from Sacramento and his camp made it clear that he has no interest in signing one this summer, Paul recently told the franchise it would be best to move him sooner rather than later, even if the trade is not his preferred destination.

Paul is expected to entertain calls from any teams showing interest in Fox and keep the options open for where he might land. While his relationship with Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis is well-known, that’s not his top choice. The Heat, Rockets, Magic and Clippers have been known to show interest in Fox in the past.

Since firing coach Mike Brown and promoting Doug Christie to interim coach on Dec. 27, the Kings have won 11 of their last 15 games and seem ready to pursue the best deal before making their final decision.

In both October and December, Fox made it clear that he wouldn’t sign a long-term deal with Sacramento unless the team was capable of “competing at a high level” rather than just “fighting for a playoff spot.” Despite their recent improvement, the Kings currently sit at the tenth seed in the Western Conference, still fitting into the latter category.

Mike Brown was named head coach of the Sacramento Kings in May 2022. Two years later, he had coached the team to their first two winning seasons in nearly 20 years and won the first unanimous NBA Coach of the Year ever. The Kings signed him to a rich contract extension in 2024, and for good reason.

With that resume, it would be easy to assume that he had earned a little grace. The performance of his Kings, though, heightened expectations – and they would not easily be let down.

Following a mildly disappointing 2023-24 season that culminated in a loss in the play-in tournament, the Kings started out the 2024-25 season in turbulent and underwhelming fashion.

They returned home in early December sitting at 13-13, finally starting to gain some traction after a three-game win streak. Then they lost all five games of the homestand, continuing to break down late in games, with Brown turning in significant criticism of the team’s play in the ensuing press conferences.

On Dec. 27, Brown was fired – to shock and ire that echoed around the league.

“I’m not surprised that Mike Brown got fired because I got fired by the same person,” said Michael Malone, current head coach of the Denver Nuggets, summing the move up as, “No balls. No class.” Malone was fired by the Kings in 2015 barely a quarter of the way through his second season.

The person he’s referring to? Kings owner Vivek Ranadive.

While other rumors have pointed to rifts with prominent players, such as De’Aaron Fox, the players and people surrounding the situation have denied conflict. “You can ask anybody in this organization: me and Mike have never even had an argument,” Fox told ESPN. “We could disagree with something. We talked about it and it was gone.”

Ranadive, though, has both the final say on coaching and a penchant for switching it up. In his 12 years of ownership, the team has cycled through eight coaches, including current interim head coach Doug Christie.

Ranadive was reportedly very upset over the Kings’ offense declining in Brown’s second season, despite their defense improving significantly. He was visibly frustrated over the course of the Kings’ losing homestand, and his was the final stamp of approval on Brown’s firing.

The story, again, is complex. Players were reportedly frustrated with Brown’s stern press conferences, and Christie had longtime supporters in the Kings front office.

Regardless, the firing made waves across the league as Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley and New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau joined Malone in expressing their shock.

“If you look at the job that he did and the turnaround that he had,” said Carlisle, “It’s just really hard to believe that this decision was made.”

“I won’t be here 50 years as the head coach of the Sacramento Kings, although I’d love it,” said Brown following his first season with the team. “So for me, if something was to end for me, as long as I can look in the mirror and I can honestly tell myself that I tried to do the best I could for this team, then I’m gonna be OK with it.”

Brown likely won’t be out of a job for long. The Kings’ contender status under Christie, though, remains to be seen.

Sacramento Kings rookie Devin Carter underwent surgery on his left shoulder on Thursday to repair a torn labrum after being out of the Las Vegas Summer League. The surgery will sideline Carter until mid-January, and he will be available for re-evaluation in six months.

The 6’4″ rookie guard was taken 13th overall by the Kings in the 2024 NBA draft after spending the last two years playing for the Providence Friars. Last season, Carter won Big East Player of the Year after averaging 19.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists. Sacramento selected the former Friar due to his defensive abilities while being an overall fit to the Kings’ timeline.

Carter is in good spirits as he posted a picture on X of his repaired shoulder, indicating the surgery was a success. “I’ll be back soon and I can’t wait to show y’all this dawg you have,” the rookie commented.

Despite acquiring Demar DeRozan in a sign-and-trade with the Bulls, Carter’s injury is a devastating blow to the Kings’ defense since the guard was supposed to be one of the team’s best defenders. Sacramento signed ex-Timberwolves point guard Jordan McLaughlin to bolster depth at the position as Davion Mitchell was shipped to Toronto to shed salary – Malik Monk was also resigned.

The Kings would need to rely on their offense to win them games in Carter’s absence. That shouldn’t be too much of an issue as DeRozan led the NBA in clutch-time scoring last season while De’Aaron Fox was awarded the same nod in 2022-2023. However, it is said that “defense wins games” and having Carter healthy will provide the defensive boost Sacramento needs to compete in a stacked Western Conference.

After an understandably frustrating 143-142 overtime loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night, Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown brought out a laptop in the postgame press conference to highlight refereeing decisions, which he felt had cost them the game.

Brown was ejected early in the fourth quarter almost immediately after he stormed onto the court during play and screamed in referee Intae Twang’s face. Brown’s reaction was an accumulation of his frustration over several calls and no-calls which he strongly disagreed with throughout the game.

Referring to a play in which Bucks center Brook Lopez was defending Kings shooting guard Malik Monk, Brown justified his frustration.

“From what the NBA tells me the rule is, if you go vertical you’ve got to have two hands up,” Brown said, “If the rule is you got to go vertical with two hands up, how can you take away two free throws when a guy when a guy got his forearm down here? But that’s not what the rule is.”

Brown used his laptop to point out a play earlier in the game where a shooting foul behind the three-point line for what he called “incidental contact” was issued to Kings star guard De’Aaron Fox giving the Bucks star guard, Damian Lillard, three free throws. Brown also noted how the Bucks had 14 more free throw attempts in the first half than the Kings. He clearly felt frustrated with an inconsistency in the refereeing.

“The referees are human, and they’re going to make mistakes, but you just hope that there’s some sort of consistency and there’s some sort of communication between the refs,” Brown said. “The refs tonight, they were great, they communicated with me all night. But in terms of consistency, you guys saw it right here. In my opinion, the consistency wasn’t here tonight.”

After Brown’s ejection, the Kings stormed back from a 12-point hole and took the game into overtime but ultimately fell short after a game-winning three-point buzzer-beater from Lillard to give the Bucks the win.

The Kings lost to the Phoenix Suns in another close game on Tuesday and will try to snap their three-game losing streak against the Indiana Pacers at home on Thursday night.

The Sacramento Kings defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 125-110 Wednesday night, as center Domantas Sabonis led the young team with a 29-point, 16-rebound performance. Lakers star Anthony Davis matched up with Sabonis for most of the night and only managed to score nine points.

Though Davis was playing through a hip injury for the second straight night Wednesday, he did not blame the pain for his poor performance or the team’s loss.

“I’m still treating it every day,” Davis said. “Obviously, you don’t get that day to really attack it with the back-to-back. But it is what it is. I suit up, I will play. I got to be more effective. Obviously, it was still bothering me a little bit, but I still got to go out there and do my job.”

Through 12 games, the Lakers have at times thrived and struggled to earn an erratic 6-6 record. The Kings have been an especially sharp thorn in their side, beating them twice now in the past month. Before the latest defeat, however, the team was on a three-game winning streak, with two of those wins counting toward the group stage of the in-season tournament.

LeBron James has been positive about the team’s outlook this season, though he noted with urgency that the upcoming schedule is crowded.

“We have too many games that’s coming up on top of us very soon and they’re going to be flying,” James said. “This is three in four nights. We play Friday. We play Sunday. We got a lot of games coming. You learn from some of the mistakes. You learn from some of the good things. But then you move on.”

After reaching the Western Conference Final last year, Los Angeles still has James and Davis as well as a strong supporting cast featuring D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. The team has four games in the next seven days before a break over Thanksgiving.

With over $32 million in cap room, the Pacers were a top candidate if Harrison Barnes decided to leave in free agency and switch teams. However, Barnes will stick around with Sacramento, as the Kings keep Barnes for at least three more seasons.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Barnes has agreed to a three-year, $54 million contract to stay in Sacramento after helping them return to the playoffs this season for the first time since 2006.

The forward, despite connections with former Kings point/shooting guard Tyrese Haliburton and head coach Rick Carlisle, decides to not go to Indiana and stays with a young potential playoff-caliber team. Barnes averaged 15.0 points per game with the Kings last season, as they went 48-34, third best in the Western Conference.

Carlisle was the head coach of the Mavericks when Barnes was traded from the Golden State Warriors to Dallas from 2016 into the 2018-2019 season. The 31-year-old was the most productive as a Maverick, as he averaged 18.7 points per game.

But with the Kings, he will be a valuable starter on a team with stars like point guard De’Aaron Fox, shooting guard Kevin Huerter, power forward Keegan Murray and center Domanas Sabonis. Losses to the Warriors were the thing that prevented Sacramento to advance further to the playoffs.

The All-star point guard Haliburton was drafted by the Kings in 2020 and was one of Barnes’ closest friends on the team before he was traded. The Pacers have a few options in free agency, but Barnes won’t be one of them.

It took more than two decades – but the Seattle Mariners are back in the playoffs.

In a 1-1 game in the ninth inning, the team was looking for a hero.

That was 21-year-old catcher Cal Raleigh, who came up with the biggest hit of his life.

With two outs left he drove a breaking ball off Oakland Athletics pitcher Domingo Acevedo out of the ballpark to walk it off.

As you’d imagine the Mariner’s home crowd went wild, as it marks the first time the team will qualify for a postseason birth since 2001.

For context on how long it’s been, Mariner’s Japanese star outfielder was just 27 years old in his rookie season.

The U.S. has had four different presidents since then.  

The New England Patriots and Tom Brady have combined for seven Super Bowls.

Heck, the Chicago Cubs even won a World Series in a non-video game fashion.

While the pain is finally over at least for now for Mariners fans, there are teams with some long active droughts.

None are more than two decades long, but NBA’s Sacramento Kings have the longest one – not qualifying for the postseason since 2005-2006.

The Kings are followed by the NFL’s New York Jets and the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, which both haven’t appeared in the playoffs since 2011, or 11 years.

To end the long playoff droughts, the Mariners have been active since the offseason in making moves.

That includes the Mariners acquiring infielder Eugenio Suárez and pitcher Luis Castillo in trades.

Additionally, young talents including pitcher Logan Gilbert and especially Julio Rodríguez have emerged.

Rodriguez reportedly recently signed a 12-year contract worth around $210 million.

And now it’s playoff time for the Mariners.

But it won’t be easy as they will have to play a best-of-three game series against either the Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians or the Tampa Bay Rays in the wild-card round.

The Kings and Nuggets held a moment of silence before their game Thursday in Sacramento and linked arms with Sacramento center Alex Len to show support for what’s happening in his native country.

Len, 28, and Raptors wing Svi Mykhailiuk—the two Ukrainian players in the NBA this season—released a statement earlier Thursday condemning Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine.

“A great tragedy befell our dear homeland Ukraine,” they said. “We categorically condemn the war. Ukraine is a peaceful, sovereign state inhabited by people who want to decide their own destiny. We pray for our families, friends, relatives and all the people who are in the territory of Ukraine. We hope for an end to this terrible war as soon as possible.

“Dear fellow Ukrainians, Hold on! Our strength is in unity! We are with you!”

Len is a nine-year NBA veteran and former first-round pick of the Phoenix Suns. Mykhailiuk, 24, is in his fourth season and plays 15 minutes as a reserve for Toronto.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been impacted by the recent events in Ukraine, and especially with our Ukrainian players Alex Len and Svi Mykhailiuk and their families during this difficult time,” the NBA Players Association tweeted Thursday.

The Nuggets beat the Kings 128-110.

The Sacramento Kings are looking for suitors for Marvin Bagley III and Buddy Hield. The hope is that the package deal will get them a good player to add to their core of De’Aaron Fox, Tyrese Haliburton and Richaun Holmes.

Bagley was drafted No. 2 out of Duke but has never lived up to expectations. This is in part due to injuries that caused him to miss 108 games and tension with the King’s former coaching staff, under Luke Walton. Since being drafted, Bagley averaged around 25 minutes per game, but that is down to 19 minutes this season. Over his career, he has averaged 14 points and seven rebounds per game. Despite a seemingly better relationship with new coach Alvin Gentry, social media activity and public statements made by his father have made it clear Bagley wants out of Sacramento. While in his fourth season, Bagley is still only 22 years old, which could be appealing for a team looking to develop a player.

Hield is the more electric athlete. He could be a big help to a team looking for a three-point shooter. Rumors in the off-season had Hield teaming up with another California team in the Los Angeles Lakers, but the Lakers brought in Russell Westbrook instead. The Lakers are a team that still needs a shooter like Hield, so it could get interesting to see what changes they make to try to right the ship. Hield is currently having a down year, with a 38.2 percent efficiency from the field and 34.9 percent from beyond the arc, but rotations could be a factor in lower efficiency.

The Kings are going with a smaller line-up, so there aren’t as many rotations built for Hield. Bagley wants out and is still a very young player, even younger than some of this season’s rookies. The combination makes an intriguing trade package.

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Lakers announced that superstar forward LeBron James entered the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Currently, LeBron has missed Tuesday night’s 117-92 win over the Kings in Sacramento and is likely to miss at least ten days if he is protocols because of a positive coronavirus test.

While the Lakers only place twice in the first eight days of December, the team also has three games lined up between Dec. 9 and 12. So if James is sidelined for ten days, he will miss a minimum of four games. However, there is always the chance he could return earlier with two negative tests.

So far, the Lakers have not confirmed if James has tested positive or not, but after the game, his teammate Anthony Davis hinted that this could, in fact, be the case.

“He said he’s good,” Davis, who led the team with 25 points on Tuesday, told ESPN. “I think he’s asymptomatic, which is a good sign, but we want to make sure that he gets back. Health is most important. This is bigger than basketball. He has a family. We want to make sure that he’s good no matter what.”

Another teammate, Russell Westbrook, who contributed 23 points with six assists in the win, had plans to call James after the game.

Tuesday’s game was the 12th game that James had missed this season. He missed ten games due to various injuries. He also missed the Lakers’ game against the Knicks earlier this month after being suspended for the first time in his career.

This season, the Lakers are 7-4 with James and 5-7 without him. So far this season, James is averaging 25.8 points, 6.8 assists and 5.2 rebounds in his 19th season.

In a blockbuster trade, the Los Angeles Lakers have acquired All-Star Russell Westbrook from the Washington Wizards on Thursday. The Lakers received Westbrook in exchange for Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and the No. 22 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. The Wizards also sent 2024 and 2028 second-round picks to the Lakers to complete the deal.

The Wizards used the first-round pick they received in the Westbrook trade to acquire point guard Aaron Holiday from the Indiana Pacers.

The Lakers were originally discussing a potential trade with the Sacramento Kings for shooting guard Buddy Hield but negotiations fell apart. However, Lakers fans are most likely happier with the deal that the team eventually completed.

“Thank you, DC! You welcomed my family and I with open arms from day one,” Westbrook wrote on Twitter. “Everyone from the front office to the training staff, the coaches, my teammates, and the fans. I’m grateful y’all took a chance on me and supported me every step of the way.”

The trade gives Los Angeles a big three in LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Westbrook. Last season, the Lakers failed to defend their title after suffering a first-round exit against the Suns. It was a disappointing year for the Lakers as injuries sidelined James and Davis during different stretches of the regular season.

Last season, Westbrook was traded to the Wizards from the Houston Rockets. In his only season in Washington, he averaged 22.2 points, 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists, although he shot just 43.9% from the floor and 31.5% from downtown.

The arrival of Westbrook gives the Lakers a playmaker after Dennis Schroder left the team. Schroder was offered the maximum extension the Lakers were eligible to offer him, but he turned it down in favor of free agency. This deal also provides Los Angeles with another star in the event of another injury to James or Davis. Time will tell how much chemistry this big three will have on the basketball court. The Lakers should be considered one of the favorites to win the championship next season.

The Detroit Pistons earned the first pick of the 2021 NBA Draft, and Ben Wallace was there to represent the franchise. Wallace was recently announced as an inductee to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and is a Pistons legend that helped the team win the 2004 NBA Finals.

The first pick will ensure the Pistons will add another top-level talent to their young team. Just last year, the Pistons took three players in the first round of the draft. It will also be the Pistons’ first top-five selection since 2003 when they took Darko Milicic second overall. It will be Detroit’s first top overall pick since they drafted Hall of Fame center Bob Lanier in 1970.

“Obviously we get to add another wing player to the restoration process,” Detroit’s general manager Troy Weaver said. “We’re excited to be in this position. But it means that we’ve got a lot of work to do, and we’re going to be diligent about it. But it always helps to be able to add the No. 1 pick.”

Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham is expected by many to be the first pick of the draft.

The top three picks of the draft are the Pistons, Houston Rockets and Cleveland Cavaliers. The Rockets have entered a rebuilding process after trading away star James Harden to the Nets.

Cleveland has picked fifth each of the past two seasons, but this time they got lucky with the third pick. The Cavaliers are looking to make the playoffs next season with their young core of guards Collin Sexton and Darius Garland, forward Isaac Okoro and center Jarrett Allen.

The rest of the order is as follows:

• 4. Toronto Raptors
• 5. Orlando Magic
• 6. Oklahoma City Thunder
• 7. Golden State Warriors
• 8. Orlando Magic
• 9. Sacramento Kings
• 10. New Orleans Pelicans
• 11. Charlotte Hornets
• 12. San Antonio Spurs
• 13. Indiana Pacers
• 14. Golden State Warriors

Both the Warriors and Magic have two picks in the lottery.

On, Thursday the NBA announced the 2020-21 NBA All-Rookie Team.

To no one’s surprise, Rookie of the Year LaMelo Ball was unanimously selected to the First Team, as was Rookie of the Year runner-up Anthony Edwards. Tyrese Haliburton joined the two after receiving 98 of 99 First Team votes. Pistons forward Saddiq Bey and Houston’s Jae’Sean Tate were also voted to the First Team.

Ball, of the Charlotte Hornets, was recently announced as the Rookie Of The Year after averaging 15.7 points, 6.1 assists and 5.9 rebounds per game in 51 games this season. The Hornets guard led all rookies in assists per game (6.1), steals (1.59) and rebounding (5.9). He was second in scoring (15.7).

Edwards led all rookies in scoring with 19.3 points per game. He also chipped in 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. However, Edwards ramped up his production following the All-Star break. The Minnesota Timberwolves guard averaged 23.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 36 games after the All-Star break. He was named Western Conference Rookie of the Month in each of the final three months of the season.

Haliburton averaged 13.0 points, 5.3 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game. Haliburton is the eighth player in the history of the Sacramento Kings’ franchise to make the All-Rookie First Team

Bey averaged 12.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game. He was an impressive rookie for the Detroit Pistons. Bey was on pace to break the record for most threes made by a rookie, but the shortened season denied him the record. The Pistons’ rookie finished with 175 made triples.

Tate averaged 11.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists for the Houston Rockets this season. Tate was one of 10 players to average at least 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and 1.5 steals per game after the All-Star break.

The Second Team is comprised of Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley, Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane, Cavaliers guard-forward Isaac Okoro, Pistons center Isaiah Stewart and Bulls forward Patrick Williams.

Star combo guard Tyrese Haliburton, the number 12 overall pick out of Iowa State in the 2020 NBA draft, received promising news yesterday about his left knee injury, via MRI. The Sacramento Kings star has no ligament damage whatsoever, and the franchise can breathe a sigh of relief about the team’s cornerstone.

Haliburton injured his leg during Sunday’s 112-99 win over the Dallas Mavericks, and the team feared the worst. Haliburton was under noticeable distress and needed help getting to the locker room. Coach Luke Walton echoed this sentiment on Sunday. “They’re working on it, so it’s not like we’re trying not to get the information out there,” Walton said. “We’re not hiding anything, but whenever that information all comes in and the powers that be communicate it out, that information will be sent out to you and that will happen when it happens. I can’t give you an exact time.”

Haliburton will sadly be forced to miss the conclusion of this season, but nothing more. In his absence, veteran guard Delon Wright will take his place and De’Aaron Fox should return on Friday as well. Haliburton is also expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the start of next year.

The Kings weren’t close to the playoffs in the loaded Western Conference anyway, so the offseason will simply start early for the young star. In his rookie season, the combo guard averaged  13 points per game, along with 5.3 assists and 1.5 steals. He flashed elite shot-making and playmaking skills, traits that will only improve as he plays more, and gets a better team around him. Interestingly enough for Haliburton, his stats have inflated since teammate Fox was sidelined due to the league’s safety and health protocols. Since Haliburton has become the primary ball handler and distributor for the Kings, he’s averaging 18.5 points and nine assists. This stat line is comparable to players like Chris Paul, Kyle Lowry and Ja Morant, and shows a potential future trajectory for Haliburton.

Although the rookie’s season is over a bit early, Kings fans are surely happy that he escaped without major injury. Haliburton figures to play a huge role in Sacramento’s future.

The ongoing issue about the failed Bodgan Bogdanovic trade to Milwaukee is now heating up.

As reported by Marc Stein, the NBA is now opening an investigation into the Bogdanovic sign and trade deal that was made by the Milwaukee Bucks and the Sacramento Kings.

The trade deal would have sent Bogdanovic and Justin James to the Bucks in return for Donte DiVincenzo, D.J. Wilson and Ersan Ilyasova. The trade was first reported by various sources on Tuesday. The issue is that there was an agreement reached on Tuesday which is three days before Milwaukee would be allowed to negotiate with free agents. Free agents are not allowed to negotiate with other teams until Friday at 6 p.m.  ET.

However, the trade seems to have fallen apart. Bogdanovic is widely expected to enter free agency and Ilyasova was waived by the Bucks. Ilyasova was part of the deal that was supposed to send Bogdanovic to Milwaukee to improve their roster.

The League will use the investigation to see whether the Bucks committed a tampering violation by talking with Bogdanovic before he was legally allowed to do so. This is not the first time the league that there was a possible tampering violation. An instance was in 2018 when Chris Paul was set to become a free agent but instead opted into this final year of his contract and was traded to the Houston Rockets. It was said later that James Harden recruited him to the Rockets.

However, one of the biggest issues is whether the league could prove that Milwaukee was indeed tampering with Bogdanovic. The NBA will be possibly going off the initial report that the sign-and-trade was agreed on as the main evidence. Both teams could deny that the trade happened or if it was even false. This makes it very difficult to prove that there was indeed a tampering violation.

Grant Napear first joined the Sacramento Kings play-by-play team in 1988 but on Tuesday, Napear resigned from the position following a tweet in which he declared “ALL LIVES MATTER” in response to a question regarding the Black Lives Matter movement from former Kings player DeMarcus Cousins. 

Napear’s tweet was seen as insensitive and by those in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and regardless of the intent, which could be viewed as racist. Napear acknowledged this in an apology tweet in which he said that it was not his intent to sound racist and recognized his mistake. 

Napear was fired from his talk show on Sports 1140 KHTK in Sacramento on Tuesday. The company that owns the station, Bonneville International, said in a statement that they were severing ties with Napear. “The timing of Grant’s tweet was particularly insensitive,” the company said. “After reviewing the matter carefully, we have made the difficult decision to part ways with Grant.”

SLIDESHOW: 50 GREAT SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2019

Last night, the Sacramento Kings ran roughshod over the Dallas Mavericks in the first half, pushing their lead to 20 points by halftime. In response, the Mavs mounted a staggering comeback in the second half, however, they fell just short. The Kings took the game 110-106, thus ending Dallas’ five-game winning streak.

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The back and forth nature of this contest was not the main talking point, however.

With 2:48 left in the third quarter, Mavs’ breakout star Luka Doncic inserted himself into the record books by nailing a 3-pointer. With that, the 20-year-old recorded his 19^th consecutive game in which he tallied 20+ points, 5+ rebounds, and 5+ assists. More notably, however, was who he beat out for longest consecutive streak with those stats: Michael Jordan.

At the end of the game, Doncic, clearly upset with the officials, let them have an earful. After the game, he acknowledged his frustrations out on the court.

“I know how to [approach officials], but like I say, I’m passionate. I know a lot of times I’m wrong. Persons are wrong sometimes, and I’ve just got to learn to calm myself down and go to the next play,” Doncic said.

Mavericks’ head coach Rick Carlisle came immediately to the star’s defense:

“I don’t coach my team through the media. It’s just not the way I do things. Look, he’s a guy that gets hit a lot. People take a lot of liberties on him. I was here for 11 years with Dirk Nowitzki, who people constantly took shots at, were trying to get physical with, trying to distract him, everything else. Everybody in the league is trying to do it with Doncic, too. He’s tough. He can handle all of it, but when he comes over to the bench and he’s got scratches and blood marks on his arms and hands, I know there’s something there,” Carlisle said.

All in all, during this ongoing streak of dominance, Doncic has averaged 31 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 9.7 assists per game. Dallas has been 13-6 over this stretch.

On Friday, the Mavericks will travel south to Mexico City to take on the 9-14 Detroit Pistons, and all eyes will likely be on Doncic to see if he can add to this streak.

One of the NBA’s smaller market teams has made some sneakily good free agent signings over the weekend to an already promising, young roster.

The Sacramento Kings not only re-signed forward Harrison Barnes (four-years, $85 million), but also have added center Dewayne Dedmon (three-years, $41 million), forward Trevor Ariza (two-years, $25 million), and guard Cory Joseph (three-years, $37 million).

The Kings are coming off a season where they finished with a record of 39-43, good for ninth in the Western Conference. The Kings, who have not made the NBA playoffs since 2006, will be looking to break a 13 season postseason drought during the 2019/2020 NBA Season. With the additions that the Kings have made, it is hard to see them missing the playoffs once again.

https://twitter.com/MattGeorgeKHTK/status/1145684325850988545

Barnes, 27, averaged 16.4 points and 4.7 rebounds per game last season after being traded from the Dallas Mavericks to the Kings. Barnes also shot 42% from the field and 40% from three-point range.

Dedmon, 29, is coming off a season for the Atlanta Hawks where he averaged 10.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game on 49% shooting, including a stellar 38% from three-point range, a surprise considering Dedmon is a center. Dedmon moves well for a center, fitting in with the Kings fast-paced offensive system.

Ariza, 34, spent time with both the Pheonix Suns and the Washington Wizards last season. Ariza is one of the best 3-and-D players in basketball. Ariza averaged 14.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game while with the Wizards.

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Joseph, 27, averaged 6.5 points and 3.9 assists per game for the Pacers last season, serving as the backup point guard to Darren Collison. Joseph is expected to have a similar role with the Kings, serving as the backup point guard to De’Aaron Fox.

These additions add on to an already impressive young core for the Kings. Led by Fox, the Kings also bolster Marvin Bagley III, Buddy Hield, Bogan Bogdanovic, and Harry Giles. Look out Western Conference because there is a new, young contender in town.

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When not splashing in deep, series clinching three–pointers, Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard enjoys exchanging the basketball for a mic, dropping out rap tracks at a frequent rate. With his rhymes continuing to impress listers, most hail Lillard as the NBA’s best rapper among a decent-sized crowd including other players such as Allen Iverson, Lonzo Ball, Andre Drummond and Lou Williams. However, it appears that those within that crowd  no longer intend to sit quietly behind Lillard as he rules the NBA’s rap game.

After joining Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman on ESPN’s First Take, Sacramento Kings forward Marvin Bagley III voiced his beliefs regarding LIllard’s skills behind the microphone. When Kellerman asked Bagley who reigns supreme as the NBA’s best rapper, Bagley placed himself above Lillard, as he stated, “Man, me. I love music, so I’m going to go with myself.” Bagley even mentioned his openness to a potential rap battle between the two, taking place on First Take‘s stages.

With Lillard listening, the super star guard wasted no time in clapping back towards Bagley, tweeting at him “It won’t be on first take… but if that’s what he want… shoot.”

Lillard’s intentions to put Bagley’s comments to bed came into fruition quickly, as just hours later he released a dis track titled “MARVINNNNNN!!!???” The track came out just 12 hours after Bagley’s comments aired. Throughout the roughly two–minute track Lillard refers to Bagley as an “amatuer,” “clown” and mentions his unestablished stature in the league.

Refusing to back down, Bagley then responded with his own dis track directed at Lillard. Bagley titled his track as “No Debate,” likely putting forth the idea that Bagley is the league’s undebatable best rapper.

Continuing the beef into the night’s late hours, both Lillard and Bagley each then released secondary tracks following up their earlier projects. Nearly the entire ordeal played out during the NBA draft, adding even more gasoline to the NBA steam-engine which continued to roll on last night as the league ushered in its next generation.

Although the question asking who’s the league’s finest rapper remains unanswered, players such as Bagley and Lillard continue to express their competitiveness, pursuing to best each other even off the court.