‘We’re not done’: Kings still building toward playoffs. What’s next and what can they do?
The Las Vegas Summer League is an annual basketball festival that brings all 30 NBA teams together in one place to play 75 games over 11 days. Fans from around the world flock to the event to see top draft picks and other aspiring pros compete for training camp invites and roster spots, but some of the most high-stakes wheeling and dealing happens off the court.
Team executives, players and agents meet in hallways, hotels, restaurants and other undisclosed locations to discuss trades and free agency. Kings general manager Monte McNair and assistant general manager Wes Wilcox have been busy in Sin City, working to assemble a roster good enough to get Sacramento back to the playoffs.
McNair touched on roster construction during an introductory news conference for Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk at Thomas & Mack Center, where the Kings will play the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday. McNair brought in reinforcements with the hiring of coach Mike Brown and the additions of Huerter and Monk, but he knows he has more work to do.
“We knew we had goals going in about what we wanted to accomplish, certainly adding shooting, size, versatility, defense, depth, as well as a coach,” McNair said. “We had a lot on our plate and we don’t think we’re done. We never feel we’re done.”
Monk, who was signed as a free agent, averaged career highs of 13.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 39.1% from 3-point range with the Los Angeles Lakers last season. Huerter, who was acquired via trade, averaged 12.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists for the Atlanta Hawks.
“I think adding these two guys will fit with the guys we have,” McNair said. “We’re always going to be opportunistic and the NBA calendar never sleeps. Certainly, there’s a little more activity at certain periods, but we’re continuing, if opportunities present themselves, we’ll take advantage, big or small. If not, we’ll take it to the season. We’ll maintain our flexibility. That’s a big thing that I’ve preached and it allows us to do things like this when the time comes.”
So, what’s next and what more can McNair do through trades and free agency to help Sacramento end its NBA-record 16-year playoff drought? Will his next moves constitute marginal improvements or can he find a way to execute another major trade to improve the team’s top-end talent?
The Kings are deep at shooting guard with Huerter, Monk and Terence Davis. They have rookie Keegan Murray, Trey Lyles and Chimezie Metu at power forward. At center, they have Domantas Sabonis, Richaun Holmes and Alex Len.
The Kings will likely need a third point guard behind De’Aaron Fox and Davion Mitchell and someone to backup Harrison Barnes at small forward. Huerter is capable of sliding over to small forward and Murray might be able to log minutes there as well, but teams can never have too many wings with size and length in the modern NBA.
Spending power
Teams are required to carry a minimum of 13 players with a maximum of 15. They can also carry two two-way players. Sacramento has 12 players on NBA contracts with two more, Neemias Queta and Keon Ellis, signed to two-way deals.
The Kings need to add at least one and probably two or three players before the 2022-23 season begins. They have just over $1 million remaining from the $10.5 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception after using most of it to sign Monk to a two-year, $19 million deal. They could unlock an additional $4.1 million if they choose to use their biannual exception.
Beyond those spending tools, the Kings have a $4 million trade exception from the deal that sent Tyrese Haliburton to the Indiana Pacers and a $1.6 million trade exception from the deal that sent Marvin Bagley III to the Detroit Pistons. The Haliburton trade exception expires Feb. 8. The Bagley trade exception expires Feb. 10.
Trade exceptions can only be used for teams over the salary cap to take back salary in a trade. The Kings can make use of theirs if they make a trade that brings back players who fit into those salary parameters.
Trade talk
The Kings continue to be the subject of trade speculation, but talks seem to have stalled on some fronts.
Two of the players they’ve been most commonly connected to in recent months are Hawks forward John Collins and Philadelphia 76ers forward Tobias Harris. Reports suggested the Kings continued to engage in talks for Collins even after drafting Murray, but they were believed to be trailing other teams in those discussions.
Harris is another player the Kings have long been linked to. As far back as last summer, sources told The Sacramento Bee the 76ers were looking to unload what remains of the 29-year-old forward’s five-year, $180 million contract. However, a source in Harris’ camp recently told The Bee he believes reports of a potential trade to Sacramento were “just rumors.”
Sacramento sent a future first-round pick with protections in 2024, 2025 and 2026 to Atlanta in the Huerter trade, so, due to the Stepien Rule, they can’t trade another one of their first-round picks until 2028. That will change if the pick conveys to Atlanta in 2024 or 2025, but not any sooner.
This will likely preclude the Kings from acquiring a superstar like Kevin Durant or Donovan Mitchell in a blockbuster trade, but they could still add pieces as a third team in such a deal. Sacramento has a number of players who could intrigue other teams, including Barnes, Holmes, Davis and Len.
Barnes, Davis, Len, Lyles and Metu are all on expiring contracts, so they could be appealing to teams that want to clear cap space for next summer.
Free agency
Much of the summer free agency pool has dried up — and much of the rest seems to be on hold pending a resolution of Durant’s future with the Brooklyn Nets — but there are still some players available who might make since for Sacramento.
Sources said the Kings have invited veteran point guards Quinn Cook and Matthew Dellavedova and forward Shabazz Muhammad to Las Vegas for workouts. Cook and Dellavedova, both of whom have been part of championship teams, would give Sacramento a third point guard. Muhammad would provide depth on the wing.
Other unsigned point guards include Avery Bradley, Isaiah Thomas and D.J. Augustin. A source recently told The Bee the Kings were not involved in talks with Augustin. There has been some speculation 22-year-old Pacers point guard Duane Washington Jr. could be waived to clear cap space for a potential Deandre Ayton signing, so he could emerge as another possibility.
Some of the available small forwards include restricted free agent Miles Bridges, who was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence last week; Andre Iguodala (unrestricted), who got to know Brown well with the Golden State Warriors; CJ Elleby (unrestricted); Ben McLemore (unrestricted); and Yuta Watanabe (unrestricted).
The Kings continue to discuss the possibility of bringing in Olympiacos forward Sasha Vezenkov, but the Greek League MVP called off a planned trip to Las Vegas to meet with team officials.
This story was originally published July 12, 2022 at 1:20 PM.
