The Whiteboard: The Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks are linked

Thanks to some of their recent selections in the NBA Draft, the Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks will be linked to each other for a while.

The Sacramento Kings picked fifth in the 2017 NBA Draft and second in the 2018 NBA Draft. The Dallas Mavericks had a pick soon after Sacramento in both drafts, as the Mavs picked ninth in 2017 and fifth in 2018, although Dallas traded up to third that year.

That proximity alone could lead to closer looks at how both teams did with their picks, considering the Kings theoretically should have gotten the better end of the deal in both drafts given they had the higher picks. To add in for potential scrutiny, both teams picked point guards in 2017 followed by a player meant to accompany said point guard the next season.

The Kings took De’Aaron Fox and Marvin Bagley in those two years, while Dallas ended up with Dennis Smith Jr. and Luka Doncic. The results so far are far too early to be conclusive, but it seems as though the Mavericks got the better end of the deal.

Neither DSJ nor Fox had incredible rookie seasons, as neither of them sniffed contention for the crowded 2017-18 Rookie of the Year award race. Still, Smith was a more effective player and displayed a more usable three-point shot than Fox did, even if Fox ended up with a slightly better field goal percentage.

As far as the more recent pick for each team, of course, neither player has suited up for a real-life NBA game yet. Still, Doncic seems to have a higher ceiling than Bagley, even if Bagley has a somewhat higher floor. There’s a real chance Dallas becomes truly competitive in the next few seasons thanks to the DSJ/Doncic combo.

If those two become great players, there will be some pressure on the Kings in relation to passing on both of them for the players they ultimately picked. Who knows, maybe Sacramento made the right choices after all and this conversation seems silly a few years down the road. Based on the Kings recent draft history, though, I wouldn’t bet on it.

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