De'Aaron Fox:

I'm clearly in the minority here as I will trade both picks for Fox. I see a lot of Tatum/Smith and Isaac/Ntilikina combos thrown out there....but why are we so sure those guys will be available? I think its very likely that Smith and Ntilikina are gone. We are more likely to come away with Tatum/Isaac and Collins/Markkanen/Mitchell.

There are really endless possibilities here. The best case scenario in a trade for Fox is he becomes a star and the leader of the franchise. The worst case scenario is he becomes a solid starter who can't shoot. The best case scenario in staying at 5 and 10 is both picks become stars. The second best case scenario is one becomes a star and the worst case scenario is both players become average starters or below.

I'd put my money on Fox becoming a star over the other scenarios. I'll never be mistaken for a scout, however.

If the top 4 are Fultz, Fox, Ball, and Jackson and the Kings take Tatum or Isaac at #5 then there's a decent chance that Ntilikina and/or Mitchell are there at #10. I think it's very unlikely that Smith would be there at #10.

Personally I'm not sure either Ntilikina or Mitchell are PGs on the NBA level which is a big concern.

In short I think it's very unlikely that the Kings fill the hole at SF and PG this draft.

And that shouldn't be the goal anyway. The goal is to find a star. I'm not sure Fox is that guy but if Vlade & co are, then I support the idea of trading up to get him.

I think we have to stand pat at 5. Take the best player available and ride with it. I've always felt coaching plays a big part in a draft picks' development and with DJ and staff here now I feel WAY more confident that whoever is drafted will play to their potential within a couple years. We've seen a little bit of this already with young players. With 10 I think it depends on who we get at 5 and is drafted after at 6, 7, and possibly 8. If a deal that involves our 10, 34, and possibly Richardson to move up presents itself, then I could see us evaluating and making that decision. Bogdon won't be traded.

I feel like we'll end up with Tatum though, which would be fine with me. I also see Markkanen going top 8 somewhere and that means a pg will drop to us at 10. Then if we can I hope we somehow negotiate a deal with Portland that includes Harkless and a later pick along with a contract for Afflalo and 34. If those things happened I'd be pretty excited for next year even without free agent signings.

You're right. Having work ethic doesn't guarantee anything. And you cite a great example. There are obviously other big factors to consider too, such as whether the player has competitive drive and, most of all, heart. You know it when you see it. These types of players are the ones in the gym the day after their last game of the season already working toward next season because they hate losing more than they like winning. They take losing extremely personally. Ben McLemore doesn't have that. That's where his problem lies. Has nothing to do with talent or work ethic.

Fox has shown to be nothing like McLemore. Did you see his post game news conference after UK was beaten in the final seconds by UNC? The kid cares a lot. He takes losing personally. It's my contention that when you combine that with above average athleticism, skill and a healthy BBIQ -- you have a high probability of success. Think Jason Kidd, who was a terrible perimeter shooter but was also one of these types of players I'm talking about and ended up developing into a respectable threat from the outside. I just feel that, considering all factors, there's a low percentage of Fox not becoming a decent shooter. He's too talented and driven to succeed. He's also very, very smart. Look at his improvement over the course of his 1 season at UK as a small sample size. I agree with Coach Cal that the player we saw late in the season is the player we're gonna see in the NBA. He has elite John Wall-esque speed and, as our good friend @bajaden has pointed out several times, Fox didn't get to showcase everything he can do while in Lexington. Just like Boogie Cousins and Devin Booker.

And that's yet another thing to consider. How many UK blue chippers haven't turned out to be pretty good, if not great players the past 8 years? Since Coach Cal's arrival in 2009, most of the 1st rounders drafted out of UK have been good to very good with some elite ones sprinkled in. Brandon Knight and Eric Bledsoe have underwhelmed, yet loads of Kings fans continue to lobby to acquire those guys so they must not be too bad.

The odds on Fox becoming a good player, at the very least, are pretty darn good.

That's been my position from the beginning.

And none of us are scouts. But they're wrong a lot too. We're all human.

We will have to cross our fingers and hope DX has it right with the TWolves taking Markkanen. We pretty much know that the Magic, Knicks and Dallas more than likely aren't going to take Markkanen. That leaves pretty much only the TWolves. I don't see them picking Monk since they have LaVine and I don't see them taking Frank N. since they have Dunn who is a similar type player right now. That leaves Markkanen and Smith. Neither help them with their defensive holes but Markkanen fills a need and Smith could be a franchise PG. I'm just really hoping we have a better option than Markkanen as the BPA at 10.

High praise here from Lappas

http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2017/06/06/the-grant-napear-show-with-doug-christie-steve-lappas/

Sees Fox as the best in the draft

If Smith and ntlinka are gone that means Monk or more likely Markkanen are there. I like the star potential of both of those guys as well, especially Markkanen. We wouldn't get the pg if we came away with Isaac/Markkanen but we'd have two guys with crazy upside.

You just have to go back and look at previous drafts, as we Kings fans know all too well, the best players in the draft can come later than the first 3 or 4 picks. Portland's backcourt is a fairly good example.

Great post, just wanna add the best case-scenario in trading up for Fox also includes hitting on the 34 pick and Bogdan Bogdanovic, which means they can still have 3 good rookies while sacrificing the #10 to secure their top priority.. This is being overlooked IMO, that'd still put half the roster on rookie deals..

I'm not a fan of moving up to draft Fox and I think he will be gone before 5. Instead, I rather draft BPA at 5, (which will probably be Tatum) and figure out a way to move from 10 to get dennis smith. I know most people on here are not high on him but i think he has tremendous upside and fills a position of need. But I don't know how the kings can move up to get him. Maybe take on a bad contract? Maybe take on someone like Crabbe's contract in exchange for the 15th pick in 2017, rights to swap picks in 2018 and Portland unprotected draft pick of 2019? (I'm not a GM so please don't blast me) Then use that 15th and 10th to move to 6-7 range and draft Smith.

I'm just spitballing here...

My first choice in this draft is that Fox fall to #5 and then the Kings take BPA at #10.

I don't love the idea of trading #5 and #10 for #3 to get Fox but I could at least understand the move.

But if the Kings were able to get Tatum at #5 and Dennis Smith at #10 I think I'd take that outcome over just Fox.

Here's Top 7 mock after running this through my mind more and more:

(1) Celts - Fultz
(2) LAL - Ball
(3) 76ers - Jackson
(4) Suns - Isaac
(5) Kings - Fox
(6) Magic - Monk
(7) Wolves - Tatum
(8) Knicks - ???
(9) Mavs - ???
(10) Kings - ???

I don't have a good sense beyond these picks. But I am working on it

I'd flip flop the Suns and Kings picks but I hope you're right!

The Suns putting a good defensive team guy like Isaac would be a good move for them... which is probably why they somehow pick Monk instead (Not that I'd mind)

I really don't think Smith lasts long in this draft.....really going under the radar here. I'd be ecstatic if we took Fox or Smith at 5...... Take BPA at 10......,would be a good draft

A lot of mock drafts have Dallas taking Ntilikina at 9 since they scouted him more than any other team but lets just say for sharts and giggles that the Wolves take Markkanen, the Knicks take Monk and now that leaves Ntilikina and Smith left for 9 and 10. I just can't see Dallas picking Ntilikina over Smith regardless of how much they scouted him. DX has us getting Tatum and Smith but I just don't think Smith will be there either. Frank might though.

I continue to not be impressed with the players at 10 spot. Markannen would be nice, but I don't particularly care if we miss out on him. I also do not think that any tade for the 2 or 3 would be a simple 2-for-1 pick swap. Either trade would have greater intracacy that would make it appealing to us. But, we just need a bell cow out of this draft. Whether that is Fox, Jackson or Ball, we really need to walk out of this draft with one.

I can say strongly Isaac or Fox will be the newest Sacramento King. We are getting one of these guys! In fact what we really need to be doing is finding ways to secure that #4 pick with the #5 pick so we can draft Isaac and Fox. This should be Plan A, Plan B and dot dot dot Plan Q!!!!! If we can land Fox and Isaac our rebuild will be near complete. Isaac is not slipping past #5 in any reasonable scenario IMHO so the only way we can assure both these players is to secure the 4th and 5th pick.

I don't think the Suns will trade us the #4 pick unless we traded them Skal and the #10. No way! I don't see how we could secure that pick. Even if we took Knight's contract (3/45) and offered Malachi and the #10, the Suns are SO bad they are not in position to bleed talent just to clear cap space. They need to land a potential All-Star to go with Booker. Cap relief is not enough for the 2nd worst team in the NBA.

I suppose if the Suns really loved Lauri or Smith at #10 and these guys are there, then there is potential for a trade to happen on draft day after the 10th pick is made. Then we take on 3/45 and swap the 10th pick for the 4th pick and throw in Malachi to sweeten the pot. I don't want to lose Malachi but if we can net Isaac and Fox I would do it.

The conjecture that we can land Fox and Isaac at #5 and #10 is ludicrous! The Suns are prime spot for Isaac. So is Orlando. So is Minnesota. So is New York. Every team wants a lanky coordinated versatile shooter and rebounder who can defend on the perimeter and interior. The guy is a beast.

Originally I pondered Isaac with Bender and Chriss was an overlap of talent. But I think now Chriss will develop as a PF, Bender is a stretch 4 and 5, and Isaac is going to excel at 3 with backup minutes at 4. These guys can play together with veteran PG in Bledsoe orchestrating these guys. It makes more sense to take Isaac instead of Fox where they would have too much youth at every position. Keeping Bledsoe allows them to ideally be respectable sooner than later with the GM on the hot seat.

Tatum is going to slide to at least #7. Monk is going before Tatum. Tatum is a flawed player with a broken shot! Isn't that interesting for a guy who is suppose to be "so refined and polished"? Tatum drops his forearm past 90 degrees on his jumper. His shot mechanics are pretty jacked masked by his smooth footwork. There is warts to this guy for those who do not automatically buy the narrative he is the next Rudy Gay. Tatum steps back and away from the defender to get his shot off. This is low percentage O. He's NOT using speed or power to get high percentage looks. Tatum is jab stepping then stepping back. He's making some of these shots, a testament to his talent, but this does not bode well for efficient high scoring destiny. Jab step backs is in mold of Carmelo or Trevor Ariza. Melo however had outstanding first step and power game early in his career. Tatum does not have this. And Melo's efficiency was never exemplary.

So Tatum projects as a average defender, rebounder with nearly broke shot mechanics and weak step back move to bail out the defense in order to get his shot off.....and yet many mocks have him going Top 5? No way!

If any trade goes down, I bet we see us take a PG or SF at 5, and if the BPA at 10 is Collins or Markannen, we trade down to Portland at 15 and more while taking on assets for a bad contract.

Don't think I've seen this posted here, but absolute quickness:

The Kings have had average rank 25th out of 30 over last decade in defensive efficiency. This rank correlates directly with our win rank. Drafting two players who are going to be at best average defenders and probably much worse would be an egregious misuse of assets. Fortunately I have confidence the Kings front office will make this proper assessment and draft accordingly.

Monk going in the top 4 would be absolutely ideal for the Kings. It just pushes Fox or any other talented player down to us... Let's hope that happens!! I'm still hoping for Isaac at 10, but it seems unlikely at this point. It seems like lots of Suns fans really love Isaac. Tbh, I think Collins would be the best fit on that team.. but I don't think they'd reach for him at 4. I think if they draft Isaac, they could legitimately play him at any spots 3-5. Chriss can play both 3 and 4, but is more effective as a 4 on offense to attack slower players. However, I could also see them going Monk since Booker is already a good enough ball handler for a #1 option. Monk-Booker-Warren-Chriss-Chandler. Yes please.. give me Isaac at 10...plz.

The guys trying to guard Fox may as well have been mannequins. Same difference

IMO the hope for the Kings getting Fox at 5 is that the Fultz and Ball go 1&2 and Philly takes anyone other than Fox or Jackson. Because if Josh Jackson is there at 4 I think the Suns nab him as the perfect compliment to Booker.

Tatum or Monk would be the most likely candidates to go #3 although possibly Isaac or Smith though I think that's really unlikely. People ding Colangelo for taking Bargnani #1 overall in a weak draft but overall he's been really strong as a drafter. I don't see him reaching.

Although my preference is to trade up for Fox, if the brass feels Isaac/Tatum and one of Smith, Mitchell or Ntilikina is stronger I would support that decision. We can see the physical skills of these guys but there are some intangibles we might not be privy to.

Just something to keep in mind. The Suns seem to be very enamored with their little PG from Kentucky.

https://arizonasports.com/story/1064655/suns-tyler-ulis-rookie-season-second-round/

Which doesn't mean they won't draft a PG this year but I don't believe they are hell bent on drafting one.

.

I would trade the 5th and one of our young players for Philly's 3rd(Jackson) and Okafor. Then, Trade the 10th pick to the Lakers for for D'angelo Russell.

D'Angelo
Hield
Jackson
Okafor
WCS

I thought we want to get better at defense? Russell & Okafor are hard to watch on defense.

I wouldn't discount Isaac for Suns. I have always thought that Phoenix is the team standing between Fox and Kings. I think top 3 will be Fultz, Ball and Jackson. Then the question is, what will Phoenix do? I am not sure that they know yet. I think players in play for them will be Fox, Isaac and Tatum. They do have a bit of a different approach to draft so it would not surprise me if they pick Isaac letting Fox through to us and Tatum to Orlando making both teams happy.

I am not worried about Philly here at all, unless they trade the pick (I doubt they will as their asking price will be too high). Phoenix is the danger team for the Kings.