Nuggets' Malone on time with Kings: Idea of playing 4-on-5 'came up'

The Sacramento Kings may not know who's calling the shots, their new head coach may have disgruntled their mercurial superstar, and they may be headed for another season on the outside of the playoffs looking in.

At least they're not boring.

With heavy turnover on the roster, in the front office, and behind the bench since owner Vivek Ranadive took over, the team's power structure has often lacked clarity, making them somewhat of a punchline. While the crescendo occurred this offseason with the bizarre DeMarcus Cousins trade speculation, its most entertaining point may have occurred early in the 2014-15 season.

Ranadive wanted the team to go the extreme route of playing 4-on-5 on the defensive end, according to a December report, in order to gain an edge on the offensive end via a cherry picker.

That may sound strange, but new Denver Nuggets head coach Mike Malone - fired by the Kings in December - admitted those discussions did, in fact, happen while speaking with Zach Lowe of Grantland this week:

Were you ever actually approached about playing 4-on-5?

(Laughs.) It came up. I was approached. I'm a defensive guy, and I know you can't defend well if you only have four guys out there.

It seems a laughable idea, but Ranadive gained some fame for his turn as an outside-the-box youth girls' basketball coach in Malcolm Gladwell's "David and Goliath." The billionaire software engineer has been said to meddle, and in this case, his desire to export elements of his hyper-aggressive coaching style to the NBA led to friction with the team's head coach.

Malone's removal in Sacramento not only served to upset Cousins, but killed a respectable start and left the franchise aimless for the remainder of the season. The defensive-minded Malone has a new challenge in Denver, which he seems quite excited about, while the Kings are left to hope George Karl can mend fences with Cousins.

But hey, maybe Ranadive will get his wish with the out-of-the-box strategy, even if an accidental display last season didn't have the greatest of results.