The Sacramento Kings may have stumbled into one of the more ironic positions in recent franchise history: a trade widely viewed as a disaster that could, in a very specific scenario, end up benefiting their long-term future.
On Sactown Sports’ The Drive Guys, Allen Stiles laid out the thought process behind what he admits sounds like “copium,” but isn’t entirely without logic.
“I just think it’s pretty ironic,” Stiles said. “If the Kings pull this off and get a franchise changer [in the NBA Draft], you could argue that the De’Aaron Fox trade was so bad it actually helped their future by positioning them in what’s believed to be one of the best drafts in decades.”
The February 2025 deal that sent De’Aaron Fox to San Antonio and brought back sharpshooting guard Zach LaVine—along with his nearly $50 million salary—didn’t seem to make either basketball or financial sense when the trade was completed.
Fox, who made it clear he wouldn’t remain in Sacramento long-term following the firing of former head coach Mike Brown, was traded to the Spurs in return for LaVine, who played well upon his arrival, but things have since unraveled for the Kings.
Amid a season that has been defined by injuries and lackluster play, Sacramento is currently in possession of the worst record in the Western Conference and on track to finish with the second-worst regular-season finish since the franchise relocated to Northern California in 1985.
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Stiles pointed to the flawed roster construction as a key reason things fell apart.
“The idea of bringing in, not just Zach LaVine, but the fact that you already had DeMar DeRozan, and they’ve already kind of proven that they don’t work great together,” he said.
“Then you couple that with Dennis Schroder, Russell Westbrook—just a lot of ingredients that didn’t make a ton of sense,” he explained. “Because of that, it was so bad, it ended up helping the Kings.”
Gleason understood the premise, boiling it down simply: “They’d be a better team now, but you’re saying they wouldn’t be in position to improve as much?”
Stiles agreed. “Specific to this draft… yes, they’d have worse odds because they would have been better.”
In other words, had Sacramento made a more “logical” trade—perhaps acquiring younger, better-fitting pieces—they might have hovered around mediocrity.
Instead, the Sacramento Kings’ missteps may have dropped them into a premium position in the NBA Draft Lottery for a loaded 2026 draft class that includes the likes of AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, Darryn Peterson, Darius Acuff Jr., and more.
But as Stiles emphasized, this isn’t a victory lap—it’s a high-stakes gamble.
(Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
“The other side of this, if that doesn’t happen, the De’Aaron Fox trade could set them back decades, literally decades,” he warned. “If you don’t hit on this, that decision could set you back 10–20 years.”
Gleason added important context, noting Sacramento’s intentions weren’t to rebuild at all.
“They were still trying to get into the playoffs last year. They were focused on maximizing what they had,” he said, calling the approach potentially “short-sighted.”
As Stiles put it: “I found it funny that we are here, based on how big a miss that decision and that trade were.”
Whether it becomes a turning point or a cautionary tale will ultimately depend on one thing: What they do with the opportunity now in front of them as the regular season winds down.
Check out the full conversation at the top of the page or by heading over to the Sactown Sports YouTube channel.
Listen to The Drive Guys from 2 – 6 p.m. PST, Monday through Friday, on Sactown Sports 1140.
More Sacramento Kings content from Sactown Sports
When is the next Sacramento Kings game?
The Sacramento Kings will conclude its final road trip of the season on Wednesday night when the face the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena.
Sacramento dropped a 122-109 contest to the Raptors at Golden 1 Center back on January 21st as Scottie Barnes scored 23 points in the win.
Be sure to catch all of the Sacramento Kings vs. Toronto Raptors action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage beginning at 2:00 PM PT on The Drive Guys before a 5:00 pm PT tip-off from downtown Toronto.
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Wednesday, April 1st @ Toronto Raptors – 5:00 PM PT
Friday, April 3rd vs. New Orleans Pelicans – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, April 5th vs. Los Angeles Clippers – 6:00 PM PT
Tuesday, April 7th @ Golden State Warriors – 7:00 PM PT
Friday, April 10th vs. Golden State Warriors – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, April 12th @ Portland Trail Blazers – 5:30 PM PT
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