After losing to the Golden State Warriors in an intense seven-game playoff series back in 2023, it seemed like the Sacramento Kings had finally escaped the mediocrity that surrounded the franchise for the better part of the last decade. The Kings broke the longest playoff drought in North American sports, finished with the No. 1 offensive rating in NBA history (at the time), and finally, for once, had a clear direction with Mike Brown as coach and De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis as co-stars.
Since that moment, most of the transactions the franchise has made — highlighted most recently by the signing of former league MVP Russell Westbrook on Wednesday — are more signs that Sacramento is heading in the wrong direction with a roster that lacks balance and makes no sense.
A metaphor to describe Sacramento’s current roster — that has an influx of guards and very little playable forwards — is to think of your local all-you-can-eat buffet, which probably serves a variety of cuisines. Sure, on the surface, having all the food options you could imagine sounds amazing, but would cheese pizza really pair well with seafood? Probably not.
And that’s exactly what Sacramento’s current roster is — a bunch of dishes that could make sense individually (in this case, on different teams), but paired together would make your stomach turn. The on-court product has a similar senetiment.
Kings sign Russell Westbrook: Former league MVP heads to seventh different team for 2025-26 season
Cameron Salerno
Westbrook is approaching the twilight of his career. There is no denying he has had his moments — for better or worse — while playing for five different teams…
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