Kings general manager Scott Perry wants there to be no doubt: the front office and ownership are aligned in their visions for the franchise.
Tuesday, on FanDuel TV’s “Run it Back,” The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported that Perry was trying to keep Kings owner Vivek Ranadive “at bay and convince him” that a rebuild might take “three, four, five years to turn around.”
Perry refuted Amick’s report Wednesday in an interview on 1140 AM’s “The Drive Guys.”
“Totally not accurate, false, whatever other strong words you want to put to that. That is not the case at all,” Perry stated. “First of all, I would never put a timeline on this process, and I’m not going to either this afternoon.
“And I’ve said many times before: when I first got this job, my mandate, when I got hired, it was to build a platform for a long-term sustainable success. And ownership and the front office, we are 100-percent aligned in that vision and in that goal.”
Perry was adamant that he and ownership have been lockstep in their common goal of building a successful team. The GM added that he has the Sacramento ownership’s trust as well.
“I’ve always had the complete and total necessary autonomy to make decisions necessary to achieve this goal, so that’s where we’re at right now,” Perry added. “Hopefully that clears things up for everyone in Kings nation as to where we sit today.”
Perry was asked in a follow-up if he took exception to the report that he was trying to “convince” ownership.
“That’s very problematic for sure, because there’s never any convincing that’s going on with that,” Perry explained. “So, no. To be very clear about that, like I said, we’re 100-percent aligned on what we need to do.”
Although Perry refuted the report that implied organizational misalignment in those goals, he did say that building long-term success will take time.
“I said, also, when I came in this year, I’m going to evaluate everything, too. And we’re going to prudent and patient… in doing that to build a long-term sustainable winner,” Perry said. “That’s what I know, it takes some time when you’re coming in and you’re trying to build a culture, establish a culture.
“I’ve used the analogy all the time, it’s like building a home. If you’re going to build a long-standing home, you got to dig 15, 20 feet beneath the surface to pour the concrete. You’re not just going to pour the foundation on top of the land. You got to dig deep – that’s going to take longer. When you do that kind of thing, you give yourself a chance at becoming a sustainable winner, ultimately.”
The construction of such a foundation could last multiple years. But Perry makes it clear that he and Kings ownership are aligned in the goal of building a sustainable winning team in Sacramento.
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