The Sacramento Kings are just an endless source of drama. At this point, it’s hard to imagine a situation in which this team retains both George Karl and DeMarcus Cousins long-term.
Apparently, the drama in Sacramento isn’t just between Karl and the players, but also between Karl and the rest of the coaching staff. From USA Today’s Sam Amick:
Yet with Karl still expected to be replaced after the season, there is a belief within the organization and around the league that Cousins won’t be truly available unless the situation doesn’t significantly improve leading up to the Feb. 2017 trade deadline. He’ll have a long line of suitors then, too. After all, this is a talent-driven league and Cousins – headaches be damned – is a supremely talented player.
…
The wildly talented Cousins is a lot of things, but he’s no dummy. He sees the justifiable criticism of Ranadive, whose refusal to stand by the only NBA coach who truly connected with Cousins, Michael Malone, in Dec. 2014 was one of the many plot twists that helped cause this mess. He sees the in-fighting on the coaching staff, with assistant coach Nancy Lieberman identified as a Ranadive confidante and thus unofficially exiled by Karl months ago.
Wow. Sounds harsh. An exiling? Come on now, let’s everybody be adults. This organization is an unadulterated disaster. The coaching staff and players have an absurd amount of drama, and the team itself is just bad. The Kings have a 26-41 record.
