The last time the Sacramento Kings were in the playoffs, Nintendo had just released the Wii gaming console, Disney had just released the movie Cars, and the iPhone was just in the developmental stages of testing by Apple. The Kings have not been in the playoffs for 15 years now, and with the way things are trending, we might as well bump that number up to 16 as we get set to begin the 2021-22 NBA season.
De’Aaron Fox is a really talented young player who could potentially work his way into All-Star consideration this season. Still, overall, the Kings really do not have much productive talent around him.
Tyrese Haliburton and Davion Mitchell are two young guards that the Kings are high on for the future, as is center Richaun Holmes. Still, there are big question marks around Buddy Hield, Harrison Barnes, and Marvin Bagley III entering the season.
The Kings and Lakers were finalizing a trade on draft night that would send Buddy Hield to the Lakers for a trade package involving Kyle Kuzma and Montrezl Harrell. Still, the Lakers were able to acquire Russell Westbrook instead, leaving Sacramento high and dry.
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Now, not only does Hield know he was involved in a trade to leave Sacramento, but this is just an awkward situation now since they have been using him as trade bait for months now.
Marvin Bagley III’s situation is not much better either, as the former second overall pick seems unhappy in his current situation. All offseason long, Bagley has been liking social media posts suggesting he leave Sacramento. In the final year of his rookie deal, the Kings could very likely wind up losing him in free agency next offseason.
It is very realistic to believe that the Kings could look to move Buddy Hield and/or Marvin Bagley III during the 2021-22 season, but what kind of a return could they get for these two guys? De’Aaron Fox is the only “All-Star-level” player on this roster, so going after a guy like Kristaps Porzingis could be intriguing for them.
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The Dallas Mavericks made the 7’3” big man this offseason, but no teams were willing to take on the remaining three years, and roughly $100M was left on his contract. That is a lot of money to take back, but the Sacramento Kings could look to do something special with Fox and Porzingis pairing up together.
Let’s take a look at a trade that would not only send Kristaps Porzingis to the Sacramento Kings but would change the future of both Buddy Hield and Marvin Bagley III as well.
