Does this trade make sense for the Sacramento Kings?
Acquiring Jaxson Hayes is not a terrible move by the Sacramento Kings at the expense of Marvin Bagley III, but what kind of role is Hayes going to play for this team? Richaun Holmes is their starting center and he is locked up in this spot for the foreseeable future.
Tristan Thompson and Alex Len could possibly be moved at some point this season to open up more playing time for Jaxson Hayes, but if this trade was made before the end of December, then the Sacramento Kings would have a log-jam at the center position. He is a 6’11” center, but maybe they could play around with some of their rotations, having both Hayes and Holmes out there on the court together.
After all, they could complement each other quite well actually, especially since Jaxson Hayes could be more of a pick-and-roll threat than Holmes is right now, seeing as Richaun Holmes is a much better center in the low-post than he is skying high for alley-oop attempts.
In terms of athleticism, Jaxson Hayes really is one of the better athletes in the NBA given his size and stature, making him someone that could really thrive next to a point guard like De’Aaron Fox.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Best & Worst Midseason Trade Destinations For Marvin Bagley III
Running lots of pick-and-rolls, as well as pushing the pace in transition is something that Hayes could be really successful in with the Kings, which is why having him as a hybrid power forward/center could end up working out big time for this team.
Getting two second-round picks, one in 2022 and one in 2024, is not terrible value either for this team. Although they would probably prefer Hayes and a first-round pick, the Kings just need as much draft compensation as they can get right now since they are technically still rebuilding.
This trade would give them a total of three second-round picks in 2022 and two second-round picks in 2024, giving Sacramento the ability to package some future draft compensation together in order to acquire more immediate draft picks right now, possibly even in the first round.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Best & Worst Midseason Trade Destinations For Marvin Bagley III
The future of this Kings team is definitely bright with the potential Fox, Mitchell, and Haliburton all have, but they are going to need more young talents around them moving forward.
Trading Marvin Bagley III right now to the Pelicans is a start in the right direction and maybe this trade opens up the door for the Sacramento Kings to move Buddy Hield next for even more future value.
