Carmichael Dave: Sacramento has nothing to lose by signing Ben Simmons

Let’s talk about Ben Simmons

It’s 4:45 a.m. on Labor Day, and I feel compelled to write this.

It has been YEARS since I’ve written anything for our website, as I am lazy and also do my talking from 6-10 a.m. on the morning show.

However, the days following the signing of Ben Simmons got me thinking, and I thought it might be nice to sit and put my thoughts down in ways that don’t always work live on air, and are more long-form than on social media, which, as we all know, is a cesspool anyway.

Let’s do this in a FAQ format, hopefully making it easier to get through, as I am acutely aware that in the year 2026, most of us possess the attention span of a toddler.

Why Ben Simmons????

Why the hell not? In the day and age where everything seems black and white, in the day and age of I Yell/You Yell discussion panels, in the day and age of You Must Pick A Side, anyone who says they know what’s going to happen is full of garbage, including (especially) us in the media.

No one knows what Ben Simmons is going to do this season.

Here’s what I’m reasonably sure of: this year isn’t gonna be great for the Sacramento Kings.

Scott Perry has been dutifully trying to Avengers Assemble his assets, and get the Kings out of salary cap hell. However, there’s still at least one more year of dealing with some massive salaries and roster mismatches. So, he’s working within the margins he’s been given.

Therefore, the Kings are in the PERFECT place to take a chance on a player.

Enter Ben Simmons.

Why not use that roster spot to develop a young player? Maybe find the next (insert player)?

Sure. But the odds of finding that young player are incredibly heavy. The entire point of taking a chance is betting on the upside. When you look at the players they’ve been talking to (Oladipo, Payton, Payne, etc.), I don’t think it’s arguable Ben Simmons has the most upside. So, they’re taking a chance.

“That’s it! I’m done with this team” (or) “Yet another loser move from a loser team”

Oh, calm down. Where was this energy with Doug McDermott or Jae Crowder or JaVale McGee or Juan Toscano-Anderson, etc., etc., etc.?

You’re not mad at Ben Simmons, you’re mad at what you THINK Ben Simmons is, along with all the accumulated anger over the years at the ineptitude of the team. I get it, I totally do. But it’s silly. You’re being silly.

This is the EXACT type of move a team like this should make. Zero risk, high upside.

But the risk! What’s the upside??

Good question.

Thank you.

You’re quite welcome.

The risk? Minimal. A final(ish) roster spot on what amounts to a vet minimum and (I imagine) zero guarantees. We went over previous players earlier that were being bandied about. There’s basically zero risk.

One player I DIDN’T mention was Markelle Fultz. Remember him?

They signed him, a former first-round pick still on the young(ish) side, who had injuries and confidence issues. Guess what??

He didn’t light the place on fire, in any manner in which you want to take that. He didn’t put up crazy numbers, he was milquetoast, and in the end all of that managed to NOT burn the place down.

THAT’S what you’re upset about. The risk is Markelle Fultz. Slap my face and call me Slippy, but I just don’t see what the fuss is about.

Ok fine, what about this “upside”?

Got it.

Hmmm. Let’s go Disney movie best-case scenario, the type of movie you take the kids to.

A HEALTHY and MOTIVATED Ben Simmons comes to Basketball Hell. A guy who has spent his entire career in either Philly, New York, or LA comes to the NBA Outpost that is Sacramento. He comes to a market that couldn’t be the more polar opposite than the ones he’s been in.

He’s 30. He’s averaged 13/7/7 on 56% shooting for his career. He’s made three all-defense teams, finished runner-up for DPOY, and most importantly is a guy that can guard all 5 positions.

He instantly becomes this team’s best defender since Ron Artest (another guy who came to Sacramento seeking redemption).

Ben plays his ass off, joins a contract-year DeAndre Hunter and healthy Keegan Murray to give Doug Christie three switchable defensive wings, except Ben can also play point guard. Imagine lineups where he, Darius Acuff, and Domantas Sabonis are all whipping the ball around.

He becomes one of the season’s best stories in the entire league, and before long we have all kinds of national media doing thinkpieces titled “Redemption in Sacramento” and “King of Komebacks” (ok, that was dumb).

Newsflash: This is likely going to be another bad season, as far as wins go.

Vegas has it wrong with 21.5, but likely under 30 is happening. Darius Acuff will be fun, but other than that the biggest story is probably “Can they trade Player X,” and no one writes folk songs about that.

So lighten up. Is that all going to happen? Probably not. But that’s the “upside.”

Even if he does that, great. Then he leaves us. Yay.

Sure. Definitely a possibility.

But Marc Spears (who is absolutely embedded in the Simmons camp) told us on the show to slow that roll. He sees a scenario where if Ben succeeds, this is the exact type of spot he’d love to be. He’s already made 9 figures in the NBA. A Precious Achiuwa-type deal seems reasonable. And now the Kings have a fun piece to play with.

Ok. But you’re not thinking of worst case, HOMER…..

Ah, Homer. Shout out to The Odyssey. By the way, if you guys could lighten up on buying all the tickets at the Sac IMAX, that would be rad. It’s about to come out on DVD and I still can’t get in there.

Hey ADD guy…..WORST CASE!

My bad. Ok, worst case:

He sucks/gets hurt and the Kings cut him. OH MY GOD, DISASTER!!

By my calculations, we would go from a 25-30 win team to a……..25-30 win team. OH NOES!!

THIS is what some of you are freaking out about?

Then Scott Perry goes and picks someone else up that is floating around and we move on. Annoying, sure, but nothing to get our purple thongs in a wrinkle over.

Oh, and BT DUB: Isn’t it ok to allow for the fact that Perry has been pretty good at this so far?

Dennis Schroeder aside (and remember, they needed a PG desperately, it didn’t work, and he shipped him 5 minutes into the season, but I digress), how about Achiuwa? Creating a 1st out of nothing and getting Nique Clifford? Raynaud in the 2nd round? Getting us out of the 2nd highest payroll in the league (work in progress).

Is it ok yet to give Perry and his staff a tiny bit of grace, that they’re decent at worst at talent evaluation? No?

I get it.

So why are Kings fans freaking out so bad?

Actually, they really aren’t. I did a poll on the Twitter dot com, and over 1,500 people voted. That’s a fairly large sample size compared to the average poll. The results?

80/20 in favor of signing Ben Simmons. That’s 8 of 10 Kings fans in favor.

That’s what we call the “Vocal Minority,” in case you asked.

Also, doesn’t mean they’re wrong. Doesn’t mean they don’t have valid opinions. It just means that the vast majority of fans aren’t freaking out, and those that DO freak out generally need everyone to know they’re freaking out.

Then they freak out on social media, message boards, Reddit, and argue about the freak out for a very long time. Remember when I said earlier anyone who KNOWS what’s going to happen is full of it, regardless of opinion on this?

They all KNOW.

And they might be right, but in the type of broken-clock-twice-a-day type of right.

So everyone just calm down and have a Fresca.

OK, so what’s your point?

In conclusion……let’s conclude.

My POINT is, it’s summer, NFL football hasn’t started yet, we all need content. Kings fans have been through so much, it’s totally understandable. No one understands this fanbase unless you’re in the fanbase.

We have been through sooooo much, and those steering the ship have generally done so in a very Exxon Valdezish (esque) manner, leading to our repeated and collective sufferings.

This is likely going to be a big fat much ado about nothing sandwich. For the first time in his life, Ben Simmons has no pressure, no expectations, nothing but rediscovering a love for the game.

Or not.

But in the name of Vernon Maxwell, Jon Barry, Ron Artest, Bobby Jackson, Precious Achiuwa, and all the other Kings players that came here to get their career steer back, just give it a CHANCE.

Imagine a world where he slowly comes back to form, and the G1C faithful adopt him as one of their own. Imagine if the Best Fanbase In The World helped him rediscover the romance of basketball?

Imagine a world in which a contract-year Zach LaVine, a contract-year DeAndre Hunter, a rejuvenated and pissed-off Domantas Sabonis, a taking-the-leap Keegan Murray, and a rookie sensation Darius Acuff all exceeded expectations, and Ben Simmons was a part of that.

Yes, it’s the hope that kills you. It’s why, as always, I will expect the worst and protect my perpetually broken heart.

But much like those days between buying the lotto tickets and finding out you didn’t get a single number, it can be fun to dream for a bit. And who knows?

Stranger things have happened.

Just don’t ask him to shoot threes.

More Sacramento Kings content from Sactown Sports

• Why Ben Simmons believes Sacramento is the right place for his NBA comeback
• Spears: Ben Simmons could be open to long-term stay in Sacramento
• NBA insiders connect Jalen Duren’s future to Domantas Sabonis’ Kings uncertainty
• Why the Kings’ future isn’t as bleak as Bleacher Report’s ranking suggests
• Young Sacramento Kings building early chemistry at Rico Hines’ open runs

Sacramento Kings Schedule: 2026-27 Preseason

• Monday, October 5th vs. Los Angeles Lakers (7 P.M. PST)
• Thursday, October 8th @ Los Angeles Lakers (7:30 P.M. PST)
• Saturday, October 10th @ Golden State Warriors (5:30 P.M. PST)
• Tuesday, October 13th vs. Portland Trail Blazers (7:00 P.M. PST)
• Friday, October 16th @ San Antonio Spurs (7:00 P.M. PST)

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