New Kings GM's Controversial Zach LaVine Statement Goes Viral

Perry’s contract with the Knicks expired in 2023, and two years later, he takes on the challenge of fixing the Sacramento Kings. Perry has a good record in the NBA and even has a ring to show for it as a front office executive with the Detroit Pistons in 2004. Perry was also part of the front office in Seattle that drafted Kevin Durant.

Not only does he have a ton of experience, but Perry is also extremely respected around the NBA, with Draymond Green and Baron Davis praising his hire.

“Scott Perry to the Sacramento Kings as the general manager. It excited me, because what that said to me is people are ready to get back to basketball," Green said.

No matter what you think of Draymond, he’s well-respected around the league, and his confidence does mean something. While Perry certainly has the respect to succeed, there will be a lot of challenges. Dealing with Sacramento Kings’ ownership has been an issue when it comes to differing views on certain players, and one such player that may cause some rifts is Zach LaVine.

The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported that former GM Monte McNair may not have wanted to trade for LaVine, but ran into a differing opinion from Kings’ owner Vivek Ranadivé. 

Ranadivé was known to be a big fan of LaVine as the Kings signed him to an offer sheet back in 2018 before the Chicago Bulls matched. Five years later, Ranadivé got his guy after trading De’Aaron Fox, but there is some speculation that he may not last long as the team’s new GM may not be a huge fan of LaVine. 

In an episode of The Hoop Genius Podcast in 2023, Perry and B.J. Armstrong talked about a potential LaVine trade for the Miami Heat, and Perry had this to say about his current player.

“No question that Zach LaVine can score the basketball…Does he impact winning? Zach LaVine has been to 1 playoff series in 9 years.”

Perry would later go on to talk about LaVine’s sizable salary and say that he thinks Zach would be best suited as a third option. Currently, LaVine could maybe be considered a second option behind DeMar DeRozan, but I’m not sure he could be considered a third option behind Domantas Sabonis, who isn’t a “score first” player. 

It will be interesting to see if Perry elects to stick with LaVine in his current role, try to acquire another primary scorer, or trade him. The latter option could prove challenging with LaVine’s average annual salary of $43 million. 

With Perry not viewing LaVine as a first option, it’s going to be hard to get good value back for him or even find a team that can absorb his salary. Regardless, it will likely be an eventful offseason for Perry and the Kings.