3 takeaways from Kings Media Day

Sep 28, 2022 - 12:41 AM

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It can be tough to know what from NBA media day is your typical preseason fluff, and what might genuinely can carry into the season. In that respect, Monday’s Sacramento Kings media day was no different.

Still, media day can be a good litmus test of overall vibes going into the season. Last year at this time, there was some teamwide positivity, but it mainly felt unwarranted after an offseason where the team didn’t do anything of substance besides draft Davion Mitchell.

This season, the Kings have made a few tangible roster improvements that better warrant such media day fluff.

With that context in mind, here are a couple of takeaways from some of the interviews on Monday.

Mike Brown has the right vibes to lead this team

Mike Brown’s roughly 10-minute media availability on Monday feautred a lot of the type coach speak typical at any media day around the league. He remarked about the overall great spirit he’s seen around the team, what he learned from being an assistant for the Golden State Warriors and other platitudes about creating a winning culture.

But this interview session was interrupted by a thunderous yell from a Kings player on the practice court, to which Brown vociferously responded:

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH”

It was a rare moment to see from an NBA coach.

After nine seasons of not being a head coach, Brown seems to recognize the opportunity he has with this team and organization. Who knows what will actually happen when the games start, but as of now, Brown has as good of vibes as we’ve seen from a Kings coach since Michael Malone.

De’Aaron Fox seems to be in the best spirits since early in his career

During his first few years in the NBA, De’Aaron Fox seemed to be wide-eyed, optimistic and in a mindset that he could help save the franchise. Then, the Kings did what they do to most players who have spent several seasons with the organization: They broke his spirit.

Especially last season, it seemed that Fox was unhappy a lot of the time, and with good reason. The backcourt was crowded, the team had a lame duck coach, there was no spacing, and once again, the Kings as a franchise seemed rudderless. Then, you started to see Fox’s mood improve once the team traded his backcourt mate Tyrese Haliburton for Domantas Sabonis, which immediately preceded Fox playing some of the best basketball of his career next to his new co-star.

Fox seems poised for a bounce-back season.

There are no bad eggs (yet)

This time last year, it was abundantly clear that Marvin Bagley III and Buddy Hield were ready to move on from Sacramento, yet there they were on media day.

Hield had almost been traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, and Bagley was a few weeks from his agent releasing a statement after the Kings told him that he wouldn’t be in the rotation to start the season.

For Sacramento, those negative vibes seemed to have an effect on overall team morale into the season, as they remained on the team throughout the majority of the season. Bagley III and Hield weren’t the sole reason the team was bad, but it was pretty evident that they weren’t going to be in Sacramento for the long haul.

This season, it’s hard to point out the guy who will be unhappy with his role and fit on the team. Obviously, this is subject to change and can happen quickly — as we have often seen from this franchise — but for now at least, it’s good that doesn’t appear to be the case.

Aside from the Phoenix Suns, the majority of NBA media days over the last few days seemed to have mostly positive vibes, so it’s important to take everything you hear with a grain of salt. But at least for one day, things felt drama free in Kingsland.