Scott Perry and the Kings — patience as policy
In Sacramento the standings sting and losses stack up. NBA Playoffs? Not on the radar. Last in the West, the Kings are moving against a league obsessed with instant fixes. And amid the noise, Scott Perry keeps the rudder steady. The GM isn’t promising miracles or headline grabs. He talks about something nearly subversive these days: win, sure — but win for the long haul.
Resist the panic
In a recent sit-down with Marc J. Spears for Andscape, Perry set the rules, calm and blunt. No panic. No decisions driven by fear of tomorrow. In Sacramento every move has to tell a story, fit a clear trajectory. A vision. While some franchises hit the reset button at the first wobble, Perry owns the long view — criticism and all.
This comes at a price. Immediate results don’t follow, pressure climbs, and the West forgives nothing. But for the Kings’ GM, trading the future for a few throwaway wins was never an option.
The market, yes. Improvisation, no.
As the trade deadline approaches, Perry isn’t hiding. Phones are ringing. Talks are happening. Sacramento has several veteran pieces that can attract suitors. Useful players. Marketable. Tradable. Still, the line is clear. No cosmetic moves. No deals to quiet the crowd.
Every potential trade gets run through the same filter: does it actually bring the Kings closer to who they want to be? If the answer isn’t obvious, Perry will wait. Even if it frustrates.
Sow now, reap later
This almost austere approach rests on a simple belief. You don’t build a team in February or in the panic of a bad stretch. It’s built layer by layer, by coherent choices, by internal development. Perry is betting on continuity, on progress, on an identity that eventually imposes itself.
In a league where windows open quick and slam shut, Sacramento is trying something else. Slower. Riskier. Potentially firmer.
A bet that stakes the whole project
Nothing guarantees Scott Perry will be right. In the NBA patience rarely pays without talent, without results, without everything lining up. But at least the Kings are moving with a clear idea. In the current mess, that clarity is almost as valuable as a win.
They’re still losing in Sacramento. But upstairs the course hasn’t changed. Sometimes that’s where it all begins.
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