"Nobody expects the Jazz to be subtle in their pursuit of Darryn Peterson, the putative top pick in the upcoming draft, but they could save the airfare and just forfeit the season from here and affect nothing of consequence. Peterson, the Kansas shooting guard elegantly described by the website NBA Draft Room as " Kobe with less bounce," is the almost undisputed top prize,"
"But only the Jazz have been this shameless this often. The Kings, with nobody to trade, nobody to trade for, and nobody who could make those chimerical trades happen, have to do it the hard way: By steadily grinding out losses night after night, never being deterred from the greater prize of getting a potentially great player who, in three years, will beg for a trade because of the indisputable truth of Kangz."
The Sacramento Kings are quietly pursuing improved draft position by intentionally losing games instead of making major trades. The Jazz have openly targeted Darryn Peterson, while other teams like Indiana and the Wizards manipulate outcomes or transactions to influence draft position. The Kings lack tradable assets and must accept steady losses to chase a high pick. A 132-126 loss to Cleveland was the Kings' 12th straight defeat, featuring an 18-5 run against them in the final 3.5 minutes. Earlier deliberate tanking has coalesced into a committed losing streak and a gamble on future upside, despite the risk that a drafted star may seek a trade in a few years because of the team identity known as Kangz.
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