Have we reached the end of the end for Marvin Bagley in Sacramento?

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The Marvin Bagley situation has reached an uncomfortable stage.

According to News10’s Sean Cunningham, Bagley refused to enter the game in the third quarter of the Kings’ loss to the Phoenix Suns on Monday night.

Kings head coach Luke Walton was asked about the incident on Wednesday night and refused to give oxygen to the situation. He prefers to keep issues like this in-house.

This isn’t a good look. The Kings are in the midst of a three game losing streak and avoiding drama should be high on the priority list. If Bagley did in fact refuse to enter the game, then his time in Sacramento could be reaching its final chapter.

This isn’t the beginning of the end. More like the end of the end. The beginning started a long time ago and the finger pointing has been one-sided.

If there was a game that Bagley was going to side step, it would be a contest against his hometown Suns. Entering a lopsided blowout while his family and friends were home watching may have been too much to bear. It may have also been the moment he was waiting for.

We are at an impasse. Bagley publicly demanded a trade over the summer. The Kings made their plans known to Bagley behind closed doors. Bagley’s agent put the franchise through the woodchipper. The Kings responded by playing Bagley just once (or twice) over the first 12 games.

This is where we are, but the path to get here is complex and it is very likely that there are more twists and turns ahead.

Why not just waive Bagley and let him go?

Whether it is fair or not, Bagley is a trade chip. As a player, his contract has negative value, but as an $11.8 million expiring contract, there is value. 

If the Kings waive Bagley now, they lose the ability to package him along with other players in a larger trade. Even if Bagley took a substantial pay cut to get out of his contract, the Kings are over the salary cap and couldn’t use the money that they saved.

When Bagley laid pen to paper on his original contract, this is what he signed up for. It’s not different from what is happening with John Wall in Houston. When the Kings picked up Bagley's fourth-year option, this was also a risk the franchise took.

Did the Kings pass on trading Bagley in the offseason?

Hours before the Kings opened the season, power agent Jeff Schwartz hit the Kings with a scathing press release, accusing Sacramento’s front office of “pass(ing) on potential deals at last year’s (trade) deadline and this summer based on ''value.””

This is complicated. Without knowing exactly what was offered, we have to assume that the Kings would listen to any offer that would improve the talent of the team. Although that doesn’t mean that they would make a trade just to appease Bagley and his agent, especially with his value as an expiring contract that might help them yield a larger piece down the road.

According to league sources, the Kings walked into the 2021 NBA Draft with a concern about their roster construction. At that point in time, Bagley was the only big man on the roster under a guaranteed contract.

The Kings made a trade that sent point guard Delon Wright to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team trade that brought Tristan Thompson back in return. This was insurance in case the team lost Richaun Holmes in free agency and/or failed to sign center Alex Len.

Adding to this puzzle, Monte McNair also came very close to trading Buddy Hield to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for forward Kyle Kuzma and center Montrezl Harrell just hours before the draft. 

The deal for Kuzma and Harrell fell through, but in the span of 72 hours, the Kings were working on multiple trades, including the Thompson transaction, the potential trade with the Lakers, the NBA Draft and the start of free agency. There were likely multiple other options on the table, including moving up, down or out of the draft.

Is it possible that there was potential for a Bagley trade? Sure, but these things are never as easy as just pressing a button on the Trade Machine and making it happen. They are nuanced and like it or not, Bagley was an insurance policy in case one or more of these opportunities fell through.

At least one potential trade evaporated and the fact that the Kings were able to land both Holmes and Len in free agency gave the team an abundance of bigs. Once you get into the draft and free agency, the trade market cools while teams try to add to their rosters without giving up assets. 

Why play Moe Harkless over Bagley?

Harkless isn’t the offensive weapon that Bagley is and he certainly doesn’t hit the glass like the 23-year-old power forward. But Harkless fits the rotation better. 

It's hard for some people to wrap their head around this concept, but the Kings have plenty of scoring options and Harkless’s ability to defend multiple positions adds a tremendous amount of value to a team that finished last in defensive rating last season.

Harkless is also a savvy veteran who started on a Portland Trail Blazers team that went all the way to the Western Conference Finals in 2019. He knows how to impact a game without scoring and his versatility allows the Kings to use multiple different lineups.

Lastly, Harkless is a player who made a decision to re-sign in Sacramento on a two-year contract this summer while Bagley was busy asking for a trade. Harkless is committed to what is happening with the team. He is invested. Bagley is not.

In addition, while young players like Chimezie Metu, Damian Jones, Jahmi’us Ramsey, Robert Woodard, Louis King, Neemias Queta, Davion Mitchell and Tyrese Haliburton were working together for much of the summer, Bagley made an occasional appearance, but mostly stayed away.

Where does this situation go from here?

Walton has made the plan clear, although he continues to contend that every player on the roster will get a shot sometime this season.

Bagley’s representation made their feelings on the matter known, as did Bagley when he refused to enter the game. 

We are in a stalemate that could come to a conclusion at any moment if the right trade comes along or could last until after the All-Star break. Either way, the Kings are going to do what is best for their franchise and Bagley is doing what he feels is best for him.

The long term impact could be unpleasant for everyone involved, but the franchise stood behind Bagley for three seasons while he dealt with one injury after another. They continue to mentor him behind the scenes and they have stayed out of what has become a one-sided screaming match.