One of the most significant truths of the NBA is that certain franchises get much more traction with players than others. Several factors go into deciding whether a player wants to join a team, but the biggest one after the money is if they can win a championship with that team. This is why teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, and Miami Heat are bigger draws for players than other franchises, even role players.
The Golden State Warriors have recently joined this list as a team that has achieved a lot of success recently. The culture is impeccable and role players seem to thrive when playing with the highly decorated core of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. And the latest to join the organization is Donte DiVincenzo, who signed a free agent deal with the team in the offseason.
DiVincenzo played on a very good Milwaukee Bucks team for a while and knows what a good culture looks like. He did, however, spend some time on the Sacramento Kings, which is arguably the worst culture in terms of winning in the NBA. And DiVincenzo has implied about as much.
Donte DiVincenzo Inadvertently Called Out Sacramento’s Culture While Talking About His Decision To Join Golden State
The Sacramento Kings are undoubtedly one of the worst organizations in the NBA in recent times, they haven’t made it to the playoffs in 16 seasons. That is nearly triple the time the Hornets, who are next on the list, have been away from the business end of the season. And in speaking about his motivations to join the Warriors, DiVincenzo has seemingly shaded the Kings’ organizational culture.
Donte DiVincenzo on why he picked Warriors over other teams in free agency:
"I was in a place where I wanted to get back to winning culture, the joy of playing simple, winning basketball. I think I thrive on that."
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) September 24, 2022
“I was in a place where I wanted to get back to winning culture, the joy of playing simple, winning basketball. I think I thrive on that.”
The Kings have made some moves to win now, having acquired Domantas Sabonis from the Pacers, but it doesn’t seem enough for the team to compete in a stacked Western Conference. DiVincenzo, who knows what a winning culture looks like, saying this isn’t exactly a big endorsement for the Kings.
Warriors have won 4 titles in the last 8 seasons, and made it to the Finals 6 times though, so most teams wouldn’t currently have a winning culture comparable to theirs. Whether DiVincenzo can become the latest role player to thrive there remains to be seen, but he has an opportunity to contribute to good, winning basketball.
