The Sacramento Kings made a lot of progress in terms of their public perception this season. Unfortunately, many of those positive vibes were generated by former Kings executive Scott Perry. Perry, a respected figure around the NBA, cleaned up a lot of the Kings' image problems after joining Sacramento's front office following his departure from the Orlando Magic. However, Perry has now moved on to lead the charge as the general manager of the New York Knicks, the team with the NBA's most intractable image issues.

While the Kings no longer have Perry to improve their image around the league, the team moved quickly to find a replacement with both front office experience and a positive perception around the league. They managed to find both of those qualities in one candidate, as they hired Brandon Williams away from the Philadelphia 76ers to serve as the new assistant general manager.

Williams worked under both Sam Hinkie and Bryan Colangelo during his four years in Philadelphia. His most recent role for the 76ers was as the general manager of the D-League's Delaware 87'ers. He spent nine years prior to his time with Philadelphia as an executive in the league office. During that time, Williams served as the league's director of NBA player development and associate vice president of basketball operations.

The Kings were not the only team that was interested in Williams' services. The Atlanta Hawks were reportedly interested in hiring Williams as their general manager before signing former Warriors executive Travis Schlenk to run their front office.

By bringing in Brandon Williams, the Kings have found an excellent fit alongside Vlade Divac in the front office. Williams might not yet have the same long track record as Scott Perry, but he has spent the last four years working with one of the league's most highly touted front offices. Furthermore, Williams' time in the league's front office will undoubtedly help to improve the Kings' image--if not among other front office executives, then at least among NBA executives in the league office.

Given the dramatic turnaround in the team's public image with Scott Perry in the fold, it was hard to see him go to the Knicks--even though it was the right move from a public perception standpoint. The Kings could have decided to hold Perry to his contract. Instead, they got a 2019 second-round pick and avoided years of acrimony from other executives around the league.

Brandon Williams might not be Scott Perry, but he is a respected figure around the league and a young executive on the rise. After a fantastic offseason, the Kings have managed to secure a fantastic replacement for Scott Perry who can maintain the team's positive momentum in terms of their respectability around the league.