The Sacramento Kings are coming off a season in which they showed promise, but not quite enough to truly contend in the Western Conference. The Kings finished as the No. 9 seed at 40-42 and earned a spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament. It was a short-lived run, however, as the Kings lost in the opener to the Dallas Mavericks.
This came on the heels of the Kings making a puzzling move earlier in the season. After years of stating that they were building around point guard De'Aaron Fox, they traded him to the San Antonio Spurs and got Zach LaVine in return as part of a three-way trade with the Chicago Bulls. Fans of the Bulls are all too familiar with the limitations and shortcomings of a team led by LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, having played together for three seasons.
DeMar DeRozan
Dec 28, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) moves the ball against Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena.
© Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Kings' duo emerges as backup plan for teams that missed on Kevin Durant
While many speculated a trade was coming, the Phoenix Suns shocked the NBA world Sunday when they traded Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets in return for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in Wednesday's NBA Draft, and five second-round picks.
Unfortunately, only one team could land Durant, and now many teams will adjust their sights on whom to target in the offseason. While the Kings could likely get a decent return for some of the players on their roster, not named Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Bee Kings beat writer Jason Anderson reveals no such conversations have taken place.
"Regarding the Miami Heat’s reported interest in DeMar DeRozan and the Toronto Raptors’ interest in Malik Monk, I’m told the Sacramento Kings have yet to discuss those players with those teams, but things could change now that a winner has emerged in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes," wrote Anderson.
DeRozan still offers scoring on a night-in and night-out basis, but lacks the ability to spread the floor and shoot from deep. Paired with his defensive limitations, DeRozan is likely only a fit on particular teams.
As for Monk, he averaged fewer points per game without Fox than with him. The trio of LaVine, DeRozan, and Monk, while offensive-centric, doesn't offer much on the defensive side of the floor. As a result, we may see the Kings look to move one, if not all, of them this summer.