Now what? Sacramento Kings’ NBA Draft lottery odds, free agency outlook, salary cap
Kings general manager Monte McNair and coach Luke Walton made some things very clear during their end-of-season media sessions Tuesday.
McNair started by saying Walton will continue to coach the team going into the 2021-22 NBA season. Then they spent much of the next two hours talking about the need to improve defensively and the magnitude of this offseason with the NBA Draft and free agency approaching.
“We’ll be aggressive whether it’s really (any of) the three avenues — draft, free agency, trade,” McNair said. “We’re going to continue to be aggressive and smart in looking for big or small ways that we can upgrade the team.”
Walton and McNair also made it clear they are all-in on the push to make the playoffs, vowing to do “everything in our power” to end a postseason drought that equals the longest in NBA history after 15 consecutive losing seasons. McNair will have the benefit of a more normal offseason after arriving in Sacramento in September with a month to prepare for the draft and free agency. Here’s a look at some of the key dates, details and decisions the Kings face.
NBA Draft Combine
The NBA didn’t have the annual in-person draft combine in 2020 because of COVID-19. Teams held virtual combines instead.
The Athletic recently reported this year’s combine will be held in-person June 21-27 in Chicago with team interview sessions, 5-on-5 games, shooting drills, measurements, strength and agility testing, halfcourt drills and medical exams.
NBA Draft Lottery
The NBA Draft lottery will be held June 22. The Kings finished 31-41 this season, same as the New Orleans Pelicans and Chicago Bulls, tied for the eighth-worst record in the NBA. Coin flips will be conducted May 25 to break that tie and several others.
The Kings, Pelicans and Bulls will all have a 20.3% chance of vaulting into the top four and a 4.5% chance of being awarded the No. 1 pick. The lottery gods have smiled on the Kings before, most notably when they moved up to draft De’Aaron Fox out of Kentucky with the fifth pick in 2017 and Marvin Bagley III out of Duke with the No. 2 pick in 2018. If the Kings don’t move up in the lottery, they will pick in the 8-14 range.
NBA Draft
The NBA Draft will be held July 29. Tankathon.com currently projects the Kings will select Cory Kispert, a 6-foot-7, 220-pound senior small forward from Gonzaga, with the No. 9 pick.
Other players in the 7-11 range include Jalen Johnson, a 6-9/220 small forward/power forward from Duke; Keon Johnson, a 6-5/185 shooting guard from Tennessee; Davion Mitchell, a 6-2/205 point guard/shooting guard from Baylor; and Alperen Senguin, a 6-10/240 center from Turkey. Other prospects could include Franz Wagner, a 6-8/205 small forward from Michigan; and Isaiah Jackson, a 6-10 ½/206 power forward/center from Kentucky.
Free agency
Teams can begin negotiations with free agents at 6 p.m. ET Aug. 2, but they won’t be able to finalize signings until 12:01 p.m. ET on Aug. 6.
The Kings will have to make decisions regarding a few of their own free agents. Terence Davis, a guard who came to Sacramento in a trade-deadline deal with the Toronto Raptors, will be a restricted free agent. Richaun Holmes, Maurice Harkless and Hassan Whiteside will be unrestricted free agents.
Holmes will likely be seeking a contract worth upwards of $15 million per year. The Kings will be hard pressed to pay more than about $12 million unless they can clear cap space by trading Bagley, Buddy Hield or Harrison Barnes. Walton acknowledged the cap implications when asked about Holmes’ future with the team, but he indicated he would prefer to keep the 27-year-old center who averaged career highs of 14.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 blocks this season.
“I love Richaun,” Walton said. “… That’s definitely a front-office question, but Monte knows — I can tell you I feel very strongly about Richaun and what he means to our team.”
This story was originally published May 19, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
