Kings sign Vlade Divac to sign multiyear contract extension
The Kings want Vlade Divac to stick around for a few more years.
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2 min read
Perhaps hoping to bring some stability to their franchise, the Sacramento Kings gave a multiyear contract extension to their current vice president of basketball operations Vlade Divac on Wednesday.
From the Kings:
The Sacramento Kings announced today that the team has signed Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Vlade Divac to a multi-year contract.
Divac was originally named Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager on Aug. 31, 2015 after joining the team as Vice President of Basketball and Franchise Operations in March of the 2015-16 season.
“My commitment to the Sacramento Kings goes back to my days as a player and I’m grateful to continue playing my part in creating a winning future for the Sacramento Kings,” said Divac. “I know that we have what it takes to be a successful franchise and I look forward to continuing to improve and build on the progress that we’ve made.”
Wearing many hats within the Kings organization, Divac has been acting as the team's general manager but Sacramento is also reportedly hiring David Morway, who most recently was the assistant GM of the Milwaukee Bucks, to help him in this role.
From ESPN's Marc Stein:
The Sacramento Kings are finalizing a multi-year contract extension with vice president of basketball operations Vlade Divac, league sources told ESPN on Wednesday.
Sources told ESPN that the Kings and Divac -- who has been in charge of the club's front office for the past year -- could seal the new agreement as early as Wednesday.
That's the first step, sources say, of the Kings' plan to beef up their basketball department, with the club also in the advanced stages of hiring another seasoned NBA executive to work alongside Divac.
Sources told ESPN this week that veteran NBA front-office executive David Morway, after stints with the Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks, has emerged as the leading candidate to join the organization in that role.
Morway spent 13 seasons with the Pacers, working closely with both Donnie Walsh and then Larry Bird, before moving to Milwaukee for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons.
While things haven't run smoothly with Divac in charge -- the almost firing of George Karl, trading Nik Stauskas and draft picks to the Sixers just to clear up cap space for Rajon Rondo, Kosta Koufos and Marco Belinelli -- the Kings can't keep changing things up organizationally so ensuring that Vlade will be there for the next several years is forward thinking. Also, the pursuit of Morway, who has experience with contracts and GM duties, something Divac did not have before incorporating the role, should help the Kings in the future if they are able to hire him.
With a record of 29-45 and reports of turmoil between Karl and the team, there isn't a lot hope in Sacramento. But stability is needed and signing Divac long-term should at least help with that.
