The 52-year-old Divac, who spent six seasons as a player with the Kings from 1998 to 2004, was hired in 2015 to provide a fresh and trusted face for an organization that had been mired in ownership turmoil and losing seasons. During his five-year tenure, Divac became one of the league’s most second-guessed executives by cycling through coaches, missing on high-profile draft picks and failing to build a winning culture.

In fairness to Divac, he inherited a challenging position: owner Vivek Ranadive was a novice when he arrived in 2013 and all-star center DeMarcus Cousins was the organization’s mercurial centerpiece. Sacramento’s small-market status raised the difficulty factor, as did its playoff drought, which extends back to 2006.

“This was a difficult decision, but we believe it is the best path ahead as we work to build a winning team,” Ranadive said in a statement. “We are thankful for Vlade’s leadership, commitment and hard work both on and off the court.”

Yet Divac’s run was filled with head-scratching decisions, none bigger than selecting Marvin Bagley III over Luka Doncic with the second pick in the 2018 draft. As Doncic has rocketed to superstardom with the Dallas Mavericks, Bagley has struggled to stay healthy and joined a list of questionable draft decisions under Divac.

While Divac hailed his roster as a “superteam, just young” in 2018, the Kings never sustained much positive momentum and underwent constant turnover. Coach George Karl was fired after one full season in 2016, Cousins was traded in 2017, and Karl’s replacement, Dave Joerger, was fired in 2019 after overseeing Sacramento’s best season since 2006 amid rumors of friction with management.

Luke Walton replaced Joerger, only to oversee a lost season that saw Sacramento go 31-41 overall and finish with the West’s 12th best record. While other rebuilding organizations like the Memphis Grizzlies and Phoenix Suns generated optimism and positive momentum with their play in the bubble, the Kings went 3-5 and were quickly eliminated.

Divac, a former center, had a soft spot for drafting big men, taking Willie Cauley-Stein, Georgios Papagiannis, Skal Labissiere and Bagley with first-round picks. The 21-year-old Bagley still has a chance to be an impact player, but the others have moved on from Sacramento without making much of a mark. Divac’s draft record was also complicated by multiple questionable trades, including a 2015 deal with the Philadelphia 76ers in which he parted with multiple picks and assets to clear cap space that was later spent on middling veterans.

It wasn’t all bad for Divac. His signature draft win was selecting point guard De’Aaron Fox in 2017. The Kings’ next front office will inherit a rising star whose speed, scoring ability and playmaking skills should carry the franchise for at least the next five years.

But that pick, and even other unexpected wins like getting Buddy Hield back from the New Orleans Pelicans in the Cousins trade, paled in comparison to the damage done by passing on Doncic. That decision was reportedly a regular source of tension between Divac and Joerger, and the Kings appear doomed to be on the wrong side of history.

In just two years, Doncic has emerged as a future MVP candidate and delivered the Mavericks into the playoffs. Those instant results surely prompted envy on the part of an organization with the league’s longest playoff drought.

“It’s been an honor and a privilege,” Divac said in a statement. “Sacramento and the Kings will always hold a special place in my heart and I wish them the best moving forward.”

Dumars, 57, was a Hall of Fame shooting guard for the “Bad Boys” Pistons in the 1980s and 1990s. He joined Detroit’s front office in 2001, earned NBA executive of the year honors in 2003, and helped construct a roster that won the 2004 title. He resigned in 2014 after a string of lottery trips.