Bye-bye, Bogi: Atlanta Hawks claim Bogdan Bogdanovic after Kings decline to match offer
After two days of internal deliberation and public debate among fans, Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair made up his mind Tuesday, choosing to let restricted free agent Bogdan Bogdanovic start the next chapter of his career with the Atlanta Hawks.
McNair decided not to match Bogdanovic’s offer from the Hawks, allowing the 28-year-old shooting guard to leave Sacramento without compensation after three seasons with the Kings, sources told The Sacramento Bee, confirming a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Bogdanovic signed an offer sheet with the Hawks on Sunday for a four-year, $72 million deal with a 15% trade kicker and a player option in the final year.
ESPN reported Sacramento’s front office labored over the decision but ultimately made its decision based on McNair’s vision of maintaining roster flexibility. Sources told ESPN the Kings felt keeping Bogdanovic would severely limit their ability to continue reshaping the roster around their “young core” of De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield and Marvin Bagley III. They said the addition of rookie first-round draft pick Tyrese Haliburton gave them unanticipated backcourt depth, another factor in their decision.
Bogdanovic took to social media to thank the Kings and their fans a short time later.
“Thank you so much @SacramentoKings for welcoming me with so much love to start my NBA career. Thank you for allowing me to be myself and giving me the opportunity to follow my dreams!!! Thank you to the fans and the city for welcoming me, and supporting me the whole time!! I’m going to miss all my friends, teammates and one of the best fan bases in NBA!!! Thank you, your guy Bogi.”
Bogdanovic joins Hawks lineup
League sources indicated Bogdanovic wanted to move on, saying he felt “de-prioritized” by the Kings. Coach Luke Walton moved Bogdanovic into the starting lineup last season, but the organization was reluctant to meet his side’s salary demands after signing Harrison Barnes, Hield and Fox to much bigger contracts.
Bogdanovic joins a Hawks team that has brought in reinforcements in hopes of making the Eastern Conference playoffs this season. In addition to Bogdanovic, the roster will feature Trae Young, John Collins, Clint Capela, De’Andre Hunter, Kevin Huerter and Cam Reddish as well as newcomers Danilo Gallinari, Rajon Rondo and rookie first-round draft pick Onyeka Okongwu. Bogdanovic will likely start alongside Young, who was an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection in 2019 and an All-Star in 2020.
Bogdanovic averaged a career-high 15.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists for the Kings last season. He shot 44% from the field and 37.2% from 3-point range. Sacramento staged a midseason turnaround after Walton decided to start Bogdanovic over Hield in January, but the Kings failed to reach the postseason for the 14th season in a row, the league’s longest active playoff drought.
The Kings offered Bogdanovic a four-year, $51.4 million extension prior to the 2019-20 season, the maximum allowable at the time under the collective bargaining agreement. Bogdanovic declined the offer, choosing instead to become a restricted free agent. Bogdanovic told The Bee at the time his decision was not all about money, saying winning was more important, but his representatives at Wasserman Media Group pushed for the best possible deal for their client.
Hawks swoop in after Bucks
The Kings reportedly agreed to a sign-and-trade deal last week that would have sent Bogdanovic and Justin James to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Donte DiVincenzo, Ersan Ilyasova and D.J. Wilson. A source said Bogdanovic never agreed to the terms of the deal, telling The Bee “there was never a deal.” As that agreement unraveled, the NBA launched an investigation to determine if the parties involved violated the league’s tampering rules in talks before free agency began.
Amid all that uncertainty, the Hawks swooped in to sign Bogdanovic to an offer sheet Sunday, giving the Kings two days to match. McNair took his time before informing the Hawks of his decision Tuesday night.
The Phoenix Suns selected Bogdanovic with the 27th pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, but he didn’t come to NBA until a year after the Kings acquired his rights in a trade on the night of the 2016 draft. Bogdanovic made his NBA debut for the Kings in October 2017, posting 12 points, three rebounds and two assists against the Suns.
Bogdanovic was named NBA All-Rookie Second Team after winning MVP of the 2018 Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend. He is also a decorated international player who was named the 2017 All-Europe Player of the Year.
This story was originally published November 24, 2020 at 6:05 PM.
