THE CARMICHAEL DAVE SHOW WITH JASON ROSS
Sacramento Kings GM Monte McNair Talks Haliburton-Sabonis Swap & Trade Deadline With Carmichael Dave
Feb 14, 2022, 9:19 AM | Updated: 9:39 am
(Rocky Widner/Getty Images)
Last week’s NBA Trade Deadline produced several significant storylines for the Sacramento Kings, but no story has been more significant than the trade that sent guard Tyrese Haliburton to the Indiana Pacers in return for two-time All-Star Domantas Sabonis.
Kings general manager Monte McNair joined The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross to discuss the thought process behind making the decision to acquire Sabonis, dive into each trade acquisition and much more.
Part 1 of interview with Kings GM Monte McNair
McNair on the tough decision to include Tyrese Haliburton in the Domantas Sabonis deal:
“Tyrese, as we all know, is a fantastic player and a fantastic person. We understand that there is a reason that he endeared himself so quickly and so fully to the fanbase. But, ultimately, we all know it requires giving up something to get something, and we saw a unique opportunity to go and pursue somebody who’s a two-time all-star, a 25-year old who has a skillset that we think makes not just himself, but all the players around him better. Domas is something that we felt put us in position to achieve our goal, which is to get back into the playoffs.”
McNair on how the Haliburton-Sabonis deal came together:
“Really, it’s a culmination of weeks and months of work, or discussions, of everything. We have been talking to teams, our group has been surveying the league, doing our due diligence. Just big picture, the moves that we made were a culmination of that process.”
McNair on acquiring Donte DiVincenzo:
“We are certainly pleased to bring him into the organization. I think that he’s somebody that we think fits very well next to (De’Aaron) Fox and (Harrison Barnes) and the rest of the guys as well as our new players. He’s a hard-nosed defender, he can shoot the ball, he’s versatile, he can rebound, he can handle… Somebody that over the years we have continued to monitor, and when we had another chance to get him, we jumped at it.
Part 2 of interview with Kings GM Monte McNair
Are these moves “win now” or “win longterm”?
“I would say, our stated goal is the playoffs and continued success in the playoffs, so through that lens, Dave, we want to make the playoffs as quickly as we can, but in a sustainable way, and in a way that we can not just get there, but build from there. I think that the ability to get somebody like Domas, who is a two-time All-Star, who has proven that he can win this league, who makes others around him better but is also 25-years-old and is under contract for a couple more years.
“(Sabonis) is somebody has already expressed that he wants to be in Sacramento, that this could be a longterm home for him, and that he could not just get us into the playoffs, but be a part of keeping us there and continuing to win once we get there.”
To listen to the full interview with Kings general manager Monte McNair, click the ‘play’ button on the audio file located at the top of the post.
For full episodes of The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross, click here.