There was a time when basketball wasn’t Zach LaVine’s best sport.
“I was a better baseball player than basketball player growing up,” the Kings shooting guard said Thursday, shortly before teeing off in a practice round at the American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament.
LaVine revealed that tidbit when asked about his left-handed golf swing while playing basketball right-handed. He swung a baseball bat from the left side which continued later into his golf game. These days he’s swinging blacked out Titleist irons that sit in a USA-themed golf bag one might find at the Ryder Cup.
When he’s not golfing, LaVine is gearing up for his first full season in Sacramento after being acquired last February ahead of the trade deadline, in the deal that sent De’Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs. He said he’s looking forward to having a full offseason with his new team.
The Kings have since hired new general manager Scott Perry and signed point guard Dennis Schroder to a contract that could last three years and be worth $45 million to supplement himself and DeMar DeRozan. The Kings badly needed a point guard after dealing Fox, which was apparent when Sacramento lost in the play-in tournament to the Dallas Mavericks and failed to make the playoffs for the second straight season.
“Me and DeMar have a track record for being able to put the ball in the basket and do the things on the court that we need to,” LaVine said. “But I think we need an overall team concept to where everything’s working the right way. Sometimes roster construction helps out a lot with that.
“So having Dennis, a veteran point guard who’s been in a lot of places, can come off the bench, has started. He can calm things down. He’s been in pressure situations. I think it’s going to help a lot.”
While LaVine competes with 89 other athletes and celebrities in Lake Tahoe, some of his Kings teammates are participating in NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. The notable names on Sacramento’s summer league roster include recent draftees Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud, along with second-year player Devin Carter, who has spent the summer seeing his name in trade rumors.
The start of the regular season is still months away, and the Kings could make moves to dramatically reshape the roster. If not, they’ll run it back with LaVine, DeRozan and center Domantas Sabonis, who all figure to benefit from having a traditional point guard in Schroder.
As for his goal this week at the golf tournament?
“Keep the ball in play,” LaVine said.