Kings center JaVale McGee on his playing career, what Sacramento should do this offseason

Kings center JaVale McGee’s offseason has been jam-packed with traveling, fathering his two daughters, focusing on philanthropic endeavors through his nonprofit, Juglife Foundation, all while finding personal time to relax.

The 17-year NBA veteran said he’s been in Sacramento, for the most part, most recently due to preparation for his nonprofit’s charity softball game at Sutter Health Park at 4 p.m. Saturday. Juglife, founded in 2013, promotes a healthy lifestyle of drinking water, and it’s something that translated into McGee’s playing career.

In an interview with The Sacramento Bee, McGee reflected on his NBA career, which began when the Washington Wizards selected him from Nevada with the 18th pick in the first round of the 2008 NBA draft. His career has included stints with the Wizards, Denver Nuggets (twice), Philadelphia 76ers, Dallas Mavericks (twice), Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers (twice) and Phoenix Suns.

McGee became a three-time champion playing key roles for the Warriors and Lakers, providing length and rim protection at the center position. He said his favorite championship run came with the Lakers in 2020 because he had an increased role and bigger impact on the series, despite having to play in the bubble due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which McGee wasn’t particularly a fan of.

“When I was on the Warriors for those two (in 2017 and 2018), I was coming off the bench with sparing minutes and I had a huge impact in those minutes that I was in,” McGee said. “That’s the reason I left the Warriors. I just wanted a bigger role. Then I went straight to the Lakers and started ... and then that second year on the Lakers, we won a championship. So, for me personally and my personal agenda, I guess, I appreciate that one more.”

These days McGee is appreciative of being in Sacramento, which is different for him now as an adult. McGee’s familiarity with Sacramento began when he was in fifth grade because his mother Pamela, a former USC star and Olympian, played for the WNBA’s Sacramento Monarchs.

“It’s amazing, man,” McGee said. “Definitely a great city. The fans are one of the best in the country. They’re really dedicated to the (Kings). ... All that energy is forced into lighting the beam. And then that whole concept of lighting the beam is amazing also. I just love what they’re doing with Sacramento and the way that Sacramento is coming up.”

How to improve the team

On the court for the Kings, McGee provides a defensive presence, championship experience and veteran leadership.

McGee demonstrated his presence in limited action. He appeared in 46 games last season, averaging 4.0 points and 2.7 rebounds on nearly 60% shooting in 7.4 minutes per game.

After snapping a 16-season playoff drought in 2023, the Kings just missed the playoffs this season despite winning 46 games. They lost to the New Orleans Pelicans in the second round of the play-in tournament in a battle for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.

Despite the early exit, McGee believes the team is poised to come back and make a postseason run next year, provided they can bring some of their integral guys back. One of those key pieces is Kings guard Malik Monk, who is a free agent.

The Sixth Man of the Year runner-up averaged a career-high 15.4 points and 5.4 assists in 26 minutes and proved to be a go-to scorer for Sacramento before he went down with an MCL sprain that caused him to miss the remainder of the season. He played 72 games.

Monk, 26, said in April during the team’s exit interviews that he would “definitely” want to remain in Sacramento, but his looming free agency and opportunity for a big payday gives him mixed emotions. Teams can begin negotiating with free agents beginning June 30 at 3 p.m.

“It’s extremely important,” McGee said. “Definitely getting Malik back is important.”

McGee said another key will be adding more grit to the squad.

“Getting some more dogs on the team is really important also,” he said. “I feel like the squad is well put together. We just need to make sure everybody’s on the same page.”

Former EuroLeague MVP Sasha Venzenkov, who signed a three-year, $20 million contract with the Kings last summer, has reportedly been frustrated over his lack of playing time in his first season with the Kings.

He came with expectations to fill a needed role as a sharpshooter. Vezenkov averaged 5.4 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.2 minutes per game, shooting 44% from the field and 37.5% from 3-point range.

Fox 40’s Sean Cunningham reported Venzenkov intends to honor his contract and has no desire to leave the NBA. Cunningham went on to say the Kings want to keep Vezenkov, but there is a market for his talents if Sacramento decides to trade him.

Another looming question was the future of Kings coach Mike Brown. That was answered when Brown signed a reported three-year, $30 million extension that will keep him in Sacramento through the 2026-27 season.

The two-time NBA Coach of the Year was entering the final guaranteed year of his contract following two seasons in Sacramento. Brown, 54, posted a 94-70 (.573) record in his first two seasons with the Kings. He is the first coach to lead the Kings to a winning record since Rick Adelman in 2005-06.

McGee said once the Kings put everything together they shouldn’t have a problem making it into the playoffs next year.

Eyeing retirement?

While those answers work themselves out, McGee continues to enjoy the offseason.

He knows he is in the final years of his career, but he’s not calling it quits anytime soon. McGee told The Bee he wants to play 20 seasons in the league. Possibly more.

“It’s different when you see people do it,” McGee said. “Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) played 20 years also and (he) played at a very high level for 20 years. This is before you had a (physical therapist) for every player and the ACL surgery that you can come back from in six months, you know what I’m saying? So there’s a lot of progress and a lot of things in the world now where it’s easier. I don’t say it’s easy, but it’s easier to last that long, so I definitely think it’s possible.”

The list of players who have played 20 NBA seasons or more: Vince Carter (22), Kevin Willis (21), Kevin Garnett (21), Robert Parish (21), Dirk Nowitski (21), LeBron James (21), Kobe Bryant (20), Udonis Haslem (20), Jamal Crawford (20) and Abdul-Jabbar (20).

McGee, who just completed his 17th season, is eyeing those players as the blueprint for longevity.

“The technology we have and the resources we have now to stay healthy and to keep getting better is a lot better than it was back then,” McGee said. “So I feel like if Kareem could have done it for 20 years, then I definitely can do it. I’m not capping it at 20 years. That’s a crazy number to even make it to, so I’m just putting that number up there whereas I’m going to make it to that, but I can see myself playing for more than 20 years.”