Kings GM Monte McNair says there’s no playoff mandate in Sacramento; explains draft trades

Kings general manager Monte McNair suddenly finds himself facing tough questions after two short seasons in Sacramento.

Why did he select Iowa forward Keegan Murray over Purdue guard Jaden Ivey with the No. 4 pick in Thursday’s NBA draft? Why did he trade away two second-round picks? Will his contract status influence decision making as the Kings try to assemble a winning team for the first time since 2006?

McNair is entering what could be the third and final year of his contract in Sacramento amid reports that ownership expects the Kings to end their NBA-record 16-year playoff drought after going 30-52 last season. McNair is still working to construct a sustainable winner as the Kings go into their first season with coach Mike Brown, but he said there is no playoff mandate from Kings owner Vivek Ranadive.

“There’s no mandate,” McNair said. “We’ve been very clear what our goal is. We want to win. We want to make the playoffs and we want to stay there, but there’s no mandate to do so. My job is to build, as I’ve said, the best team that’s going to take the court this year and for years to come.

“I think Keegan is exactly that player. I think he’s going to be with us for a long time and somebody who’s got a very bright future ahead of him in this league, and he’s going to contribute for many years ahead.”

McNair traded the draft rights to No. 37 pick Jaden Hardy to the Dallas Mavericks for two future second-round picks, one in 2024 and another in 2028. Many fans and draft analysts were critical of that move, noting that Hardy, a guard who averaged 17.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists for G League Ignite, was once a consensus five-star recruit and one of the top players in the Class of 2021.

When asked about his decision to trade the pick, McNair indicated he has other plans for that roster spot with free agency set to begin Thursday. Sacramento already has nine players under guaranteed contracts for next season. Murray will bring that number to 10 when he signs. The Kings also have Chimezie Metu on a non-guaranteed $1.9 million contract and a $2.6 million club option on Trey Lyles.

“For us, as we go into draft night and into free agency, we’re really managing both our roster and our roster spots,” McNair said. “We’ve got a bunch of guaranteed contracts already. We’re adding one more (Murray) very quickly, and so that’s one thing, opening up another roster spot as we go into free agency, and we have a lot of things on the table.

“And the other is our asset management and building the portfolio so we can continue to build out the team, and for us the trade off at that point, and turning one second into two in the future, we felt that, plus opening up the roster spot, allowed us to have the best options as we go into July.”

The Kings traded the 49th overall pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers to acquire the rights to All-EuroLeague forward Sasha Vezenkov and cash considerations. Vezenkov, 26, is a 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward who was selected by the Brooklyn Nets with the 57th pick in the 2017 draft.

McNair said Vezenkov’s talent is intriguing, but he couldn’t say when or if he would come to the United States to make his NBA debut.

“The intrigue with him is the size with his shooting, somebody who hits 3s at a high clip but can also play-make and shows feel out there on the court, and the fact that he’s done it at arguably the second-best league in the world at an age where he’s just entering his prime,” McNair said. “We love to see that … so being able to acquire his rights, we’ll see what we do going forward, but he’s another guy that we’re excited to welcome to the Kings.”