Continuing the fast-growing tradition of organizational upheaval during the brief reign of owner Vivek Ranadive, former Sacramento Kings center Vlade Divac has quietly emerged as the team's most prominent front-office voice on basketball-related decisions, according to ESPN's Marc Stein.
Divac, who was hired by the Kings in early March under the title of vice president of basketball and franchise operations, has reportedly supplanted general manager Pete D'Alessandro as Sacramento's lead basketball decision-maker.
He's also taken the place of former top adviser Chris Mullin, who just signed on as the next head coach at his alma mater, St. John's.
D'Alessandro's future with the Kings appears murky, and Stein reports the Kings have already commenced a search to add another front-line basketball executive to work alongside Divac.
Ranadive hired Divac despite resistance from both D'Alessandro and Mullin, The Sacramento Bee's Ailene Voisin reported last month. Having already fired two head coaches this season, this latest front-office power shakeup appears to be part of a pattern of knee-jerk decisions and an overarching quick-fix approach from Ranadive.
Divac understands why Ranadive has been so jumpy. This season marks the ninth in a row the Kings have failed to make the playoffs.
"I understand his frustration," Divac said Tuesday. "We need better shooting, more talent. That's obvious. And five years in the league and five coaches; DeMarcus (Cousins) needs stability. We're trying to bring that with (recently-hired head coach George Karl), myself and make this a stable situation.
"But when I look at him, I see a dominating big guy who is not afraid of anything. He's playing in the paint, hustling, playing hard. I think he's unbelievable. George is going to develop his passing abilities, create more opportunities for him because everybody is moving around. We're going to help him. Believe me. Next year will be very different."
