Sacramento Kings' family ties have team in a bind

Vivek Ranadive has let his family make decisions for the Kings

There have been other questionable moves from the Kings in recent years that seem rooted in family ties. Anjali Ranadive, daughter of Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, began working for the Stockton Kings in 2022 and was promoted to general manager in 2023. During that time, The Athletic reported that the younger Ranadive had a relationship with Stockton player Chance Comanche and advocated for him to get promoted to the NBA team. Later, Comanche was arrested on murder charges.

The Kings aren't accused of any involvement in that crime, but the incident shows the lack of judgment in the organization. Anjali Ranadive also had a relationship with Stockton player Jeremy Lamb, who was present with her and her father when the elder Ranadive decided to fire head coach Mike Brown last season, though she'd resigned as Stockton's GM already.

It was already questionable to hire an inexperienced 31-year-old to run the G League team, but it's worse that she was reportedly dating the players. Vivek Ranadive has fired eight head coaches since buying the Kings in 2013, but still leans on his family and trusted advisers, including former GM Vlade Divac.

The Kings have been especially directionless this offseason

There seems to be little rhyme or reason for the Kings' offseason moves. Ranadive fired GM Monte McNair in April, and since then, the team's biggest acquisitions have been veteran guards Dennis Schroder and Russell Westbrook — despite the team already having four guards and trading for No. 24 pick Nique Clifford.

The Kings already lacked front court depth before the injury to Keegan Murray. Yet they signed Westbrook and traded for a 6-foot-5 G League guard Wednesday. Two of their three two-way players are 6-foot-5 or shorter. Instead of addressing their obvious roster holes, the Kings are trading for the coach's son-in-law.

Ultimately, losing a first-round G League pick is not a big deal. But it's another example of the Kings wasting assets and roster spots on whims from the owner or his pals. It also helps explain why Ranadive has owned the Kings for 12 seasons, and they've only made the playoffs once.