Kings owner Vivek Ranadive reportedly wanted a new voice to help Vlade Divac make roster decisions.
The now-former Kings general manager didn’t like that idea, so he resigned from the position Friday.
The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported Friday, citing sources, that Ranadive told Divac he wanted advisor Joe Dumars to share in the responsibilities of roster decisions for the Kings.
Divac, according to Amick’s sources, had “zero interest” in a power share. He wanted full control of the roster decisions.
So, a day after the Kings returned from a disappointing eight-game NBA restart in Orlando, Fla., Divac stepped down.
Dumars will step in as the interim executive vice president of basketball operations, and spearhead the search for a new general manager of the Kings.
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But Dumars might not hire a new general manager right away.
Yahoo Sports’ Vincent Goodwill reported Friday, citing sources, that Dumars could use the 2020-21 NBA season to evaluate prospective candidates, meaning the Kings would go one year without an official GM.
The Kings, led by Dumars, now head into an offseason of uncertainty. Bogdan Bogdanovic is a restricted free agent. Kent Bazemore, Harry Giles, Alex Len, Yogi Ferrell and Corey Brewer are unrestricted free agents. Marvin Bagley just finished off an injury-riddled second NBA season. Buddy Hield signed a lucrative contract last year, but was moved to the second unit before the season was shut down in March.
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And the Kings also have a lottery pick in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft.
So with no new GM reportedly coming for a while, all these decisions rest on Dumars, who Ranadivé wanted to have a voice in the room anyway.
NBA rumors: Kings’ Vlade Divac rejected shared role with Joe Dumars originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
