NBA Analyst Reveals Three-Word Fix for Kings' Offseason

The Sacramento Kings need to turn things around in the 2025 NBA offseason.

Apr 11, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) dribbles against Los Angeles Clippers guard Kris Dunn (8) during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The Sacramento Kings missed out on the NBA postseason for the second consecutive year after getting knocked out in the play-in tournament. They were dealt a final blow by the Dallas Mavericks, who beat Sacramento 120-106 in a crushing loss.

Kings fans were optimistic heading into the year after landing star veteran DeMar DeRozan in the offseason, but things didn't go to plan from there. The team ended up dealing longtime point guard De'Aaron Fox halfway through the season and went on to finish the year with just 40 wins.

On top of losing Fox, the Kings fired head coach Mike Brown after a rough start to the season and handed the keys to assistant coach Doug Christie. After some convincing performances, Christie landed himself a full-time job for next season.

There are a number of reasons why Doug Christie is the perfect candidate to be the Sacramento Kings Head Coach, but I think one stands out from the rest…

The players love him. Guys like Jake LaRavia, Keon Ellis & Devin Carter can learn so much from Doug and they have already.… pic.twitter.com/ePbqLNqPXP

— E Train Talks Sports (@ETrainNBA) May 31, 2025

Analysts are starting to pick apart the Kings' roster and determine who should stay for next season. Bleacher Report writer Zach Buckley thinks the Kings should have one thing in mind: "A bigger window."

If there was ever a championship window open in Sacramento over the past couple of decades, then it's already beginning to shut.

The Sacramento Kings really traded Tyrese Haliburton.

Man oh man. pic.twitter.com/KJvy71K9xw

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) June 1, 2025

"For reasons known perhaps only to them, the Kings placed a healthy wager on Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine forming a high-level competitor in the fully loaded Western Conference," Buckley wrote. "To the surprise of no one else, that wager went bust. Sacramento posted a losing record and a middling net rating, then dropped its only play-in game (by double digits) to a Mavericks team missing Kyrie Irving."

"The Kings, who've managed to unravel the momentum they generated during their beam-lighting breakout in 2022-23, might already need a substantial shift toward something else. While there's no telling if Sacramento's ownership could stomach a full reset, there are rumblings that the Kings will at least 'gauge the trade market' on DeRozan, per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line," Buckley continued.

"Dealing DeRozan and having an otherwise quiet offseason would solve nothing. More significant changes are needed, either to beef-up the roster around Sabonis right now or to stockpile assets for the post-Sabonis era. Win-now intentions without win-now talent cannot be the guiding principle any longer."

Depending on how DeRozan's future turns out, the Kings could have yet another new face running the offense. Sacramento relied on guard Zach LaVine toward the end of the year, but the mixture of him and DeRozan has failed both with the Kings and the Chicago Bulls.

The Miami Heat are the favorites to land DeMar DeRozan, per @BovadaOfficial

Miami Heat: +145
Los Angeles Lakers: +220
Toronto Raptors: +375
Denver Nuggets: +375
Philadelphia 76ers: +525 pic.twitter.com/6cj48T4rPU

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 27, 2025

As Buckley mentioned, the talent simply hasn't produced. If the Kings are paying these high-value contracts and not getting results, then why waste the money?

Sacramento has a long offseason ahead and many very different options to choose from. If the roster stays the same, the Kings could be in trouble if results don't come soon.