Former general manager of the Sacramento Kings, Vlade Divac, has finally come clean to fans around the NBA and of the franchise as to why he passed on Luka Doncic.

For those who are not aware, Divac decided to take Marvin Bagley III with the second pick in the 2018 pick over Doncic. While Bagley didn’t have the worst run with the Kings, it wasn’t pleasant as he was never available to play, and it became apparent how disconnected both sides were before ending their partnership.

I say all this to say that Bagley isn’t even a tenth of the player Doncic is, but Divac’s reasoning? De’Aaron Fox.

“At that position, I already had De’Aaron Fox, whom I had drafted a year earlier,” Divac told Index. “At the time, I believed Fox was a player who could become a franchise star in the coming years. Time will tell if I was wrong. As things stand now, it seems I was, but I still have faith in Fox having a great career.”

According to the former GM, Divac felt Doncic and Fox couldn’t coexist. On the other hand, fans thought that since Kyrie Irving and Doncic paired together so well, it could have been the same for Doncic and Fox.

However, Divac explains his reasoning:

“No,” Divac said when asked if Fox and Doncic could play together like Irving and Doncic have. “Irving is a classic scorer, just like Luka. Fox isn’t; he’s a playmaker who needs the ball, just like Luka. I could’ve taken Luka, but then I’d have had to trade Fox. Interestingly, Phoenix also passed on Luka, and at the time, their coach was Igor Kokoškov, who had coached Luka in Slovenia. Atlanta drafted Luka, but they traded him away. It was Dallas that eventually took him. I love watching Luka; I really enjoy his style of basketball. I had my own reasons for making that decision. Maybe I made a mistake, but time will tell.”

Since the night these players were drafted, Doncic has cleared these players in terms of individual success and accomplishments.

While making it to the NBA Finals once in his career, Deandre Ayton seemingly had issues in Phoenix and looked to be falling flat with his current team, the Portland Trail Blazers.

Young is a phenomenal player but was in heated rumors and conversations about being traded. This is when the Atlanta Hawks still had Dejounte Murray on their roster. For Young, he hasn’t been to the heights, like the Finals, as the other two men have.

Since the 2018 draft, Doncic has had the most success. His team is on the up-and-up, he’s been in the Finals, he’s playing with Irving, and he has a fantastic roster built around him. Doncic has always been in the MVP conversation.

As Divac said, time will only tell whether the Kings made the right decision by passing up on Doncic for Bagley.

According to multiple reports, led by The Athletic’s Shams Charania and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, DeMar DeRozan has been traded from the Chicago Bulls to the Sacramento Kings.

DeRozan has agreed to a three-year, $74 million deal, which is official through sign-and-trade. This is a three-way trade involving Sacramento, Chicago, and the San Antonio Spurs.

The Bulls are getting Chris Duarte, two second-round picks. The Kings are getting DeRozan, while the Spurs are getting Harrison Barnes.

While general manager Brian Wright isn’t landing DeRozan, he did get Barnes to pair with Victor Wembanyama and a young squad.

According to Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes, De’Aaron Fox was crucial in pitching Sacramento to DeRozan. During the meeting, both were known to be “ecstatic” to play with each other. The top three players will be DeRozan, Fox, and Domantas Sabonis.

During the Kings NBA Summer League game, DeRozan walked out to a crowd, giving him a standing ovation that was very excited to see him in their building.

Mike Brown Signs 3-Year Extension With Kings

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Sacramento Kings have extended head coach Mike Brown to a new three-year deal.

Earlier reports suggested contract talks stalled, with money being a huge factor. However, both sides were able to come to a compromise that still allowed Brown to be paid a pretty penny but not at the $10 million he wanted.

Originally, Sacramento offered Brown $7 million a season; the 54-year-old wanted $10 million a season, as he thought himself a coach who deserved a big pay raise for what he had done to the organization. In the end, both sides agreed to $8.5 million a season.

The official deal will run through the 2026-27 season, with him earning $30 million over the next three years. Mike Brown was entering the final guaranteed year of his contract.