Mistakes happen. We sleep in a little too late or we forget to do a project. But for us, mistakes are simply, just that – mistakes. For the thirty NBA teams, mistakes cost them, potentially, tens of millions of dollars, a playoff appearance, or even a championship. They have been riddled throughout history. It can be draft picks (Blazer fans know what this is like), it can be free agency (can I get an amen from Knicks fans?), or it can be virtually anything else (in the case of the Kings, EVERYTHING ELSE). Thus, we present the worst mistakes from each NBA team over the past ten years.

The Sacramento Kings Biggest Mistake in the Past Ten Years

The Sacramento Kings have made a lot of mistakes in the past ten years. A lot. To the point where it’s become laughable, quite literally. That’s why the Kings are prominently featured in the paragraph above. Everything about the organization has been ridiculed in the past few years, and it’s easy to understand why, especially when its owner says things like this. People thought that the Kings would shed their reputation as the laughingstock of the league as soon as the Maloof brothers sold the team. Nope. Sacramento has become as pathetic as ever under new majority owner Vivek Ranadivé, making bad decisions in every aspect of front office management. Whether it be through objectively awful trades, perplexing draft decisions, or nonsensical coach firings, the Kings have been just as bad a mess as before – or worse – since Ranadivé took over. That’s why it’s no surprise that Sacramento hasn’t made the playoffs since 2006. That’s right: it’s been over a decade since the Kings were even in the top half of the league, let alone championship contention.

The Mistake

So if there’s such a vast collection of mistakes to choose from, which is Sacramento’s worst? Well, it wouldn’t be quite right to narrow it down to a simple trade or draft decision. Taken individually, those mistakes have too small of an effect on the organization. The hiring of one person can’t be the worst mistake, either. After all, bad decisions have been made by multiple Kings general managers under multiple ownership groups. One front office member isn’t at fault for their biggest problems.

Sacramento’s worst mistake of the past ten years is player-based. Throughout all of the turmoil over the last several years, who has remained a constant in the organization? DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento’s All-NBA caliber starting center. The Kings’ mistake is that they still haven’t traded Cousins in the six years that he’s been with the team. Their refusal to trade him is holding back the franchise, preventing the Kings from leaving their perpetual state of mediocrity.

Why Cousins Should Have Been Traded Already

Attitude Problems

Cousins is undoubtedly a terrific player; no one questions that. But he’s also known for his attitude problems, receiving countless technical fouls and suspensions over the years. Some think that he may be a locker room cancer, and that the revolving door of coaches in Sacramento is at least partially due to Cousins’ presence. Current Kings head coach Dave Joerger will be Cousins’ sixth in Sacramento. Cousins must be part of the problem, even if front office incompetence is a factor. Obviously, the organization’s dysfunction goes far beyond just one player, but Cousins certainly hasn’t helped the cause since arriving in Sacramento. As a franchise player, his leadership has been questionable at best.

His Play Translates to Success…But Not Enough of It

Here’s the bigger issue with Cousins. He’s an excellent player, and stats such as Win Shares and on/off net ratings reflect that. It’s even more telling that the Kings struggle immensely without Cousins; they won just six of the 23 games that he missed during the 2014-15 season. Cousins does help his team win games; his teammates and coaches around him simply aren’t good enough to finish the job.

So why trade Cousins, then, if he’s helping his team win games? Well, look at Sacramento’s win-loss records over the last several years. The Kings have won 24, 22, 28, 28, 29, and 33 games, respectively, in the six seasons that Cousins has played for them. While Cousins helps the team win games, he’s not LeBron James. He simply can’t carry a weak supporting cast to a playoff spot. Cousins shouldn’t be blamed for this, but it’s still reality. With Cousins leading the team to some wins, but not enough of them, the Kings have been stuck in a dreaded spot amid the NBA hierarchy. Despite all of their losing seasons, they’ve never had a top four draft pick since Cousins came into the league. That’s left the Kings with no opportunities to draft a sure-fire stud, and given the unpredictable nature of mid-lottery picks, it’s no surprise that Sacramento’s typically inept front office hasn’t been able to nail any of them.

2018 Free Agency

Lastly, Cousins is a free agent in the summer of 2018. It’s unlikely that any team will be willing to trade for him during the 2017-18 season, when Cousins will be in his contract year. At that point, teams would almost certainly rather wait for Cousins’ free agency than give up assets in a trade for him. Furthermore, teams may not want to surrender valuable pieces in the hopes of re-signing Cousins, with the risk of him leaving just a few months later.

It only makes sense for the Kings to trade Cousins, or have traded him already. He hasn’t had any major injuries yet, and at age 26, he may be at or near the peak of his value. Many teams looking for a star would offer a nice collection of young players and draft picks for Cousins, most notably the Boston Celtics, who could put together quite the trade package. Anyway, Cousins has no reason to stay in Sacramento in free agency – things haven’t exactly gone smoothly over the course of his Kings tenure – so it would be surprising, at this point, if Cousins intends to re-sign with Sacramento in 2018.

The time to trade Cousins should’ve come already, but it might not be too late for the Kings. However, given the public statements made by Kings GM Vlade Divac just a few months ago, it seems as though Sacramento is going to follow through on its mistake of not trading Cousins.

The Outcome

As a result of not trading Cousins, the Kings have continued to slog through losing seasons, yet never draft any stars. Rather than trading Cousins, bottoming out completely, and going the Sam Hinkie route, the Kings have continued their attempt to delay the inevitable. As great a player as Cousins is, his talents are being wasted on a team that will likely never make the playoffs with him leading it. After all, what good is having a star, when that star can never shine in the playoffs?

Conclusion

Even if it’s tough to part with a star, the Kings simply need to do it. It’s the only way that they can truly move on and re-build. Sacramento will finally be able to get out of mediocrity and hit the bottom, but give hope to their fans by drafting exciting young prospects and potential superstars. That’s essentially the only way that the Kings, with all of their dysfunction, will be able to make the playoffs at last, after over a decade of misery. Perhaps a new core of players could even contend for a title in Sacramento someday.

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