Sacramento Kings, Tyrese Haliburton
Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
The Sacramento Kings helped turn the Indiana Pacers into a perennial contender in the Eastern Conference, all stemming from the blockbuster Tyrese Haliburton trade. Now, new information has emerged o why Sacramento traded Haliburton instead of De’Aaron Fox.
According to Jon Krawczynski and James Edwards III of The Athletic, the Kings did explore trading Fox in 2022 before moving Haliburton to the Pacers in exchange for Domantas Sabonis. However, negotiations with Indiana quickly made it clear there was zero interest in Fox.
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Tyrese Haliburton stats (Sacramento Kings): 13.6 PPG, 6.3 APG, 3.4 RPG, 1.5 SPG, 46.5% FG, 41.1% 3PT, .102 Win Shares per 48 Minutes in 109 games played
As noted by Krawczynski and Edwards III, Sacramento first offered Indiana a deal for Sabonis centered around Fox. The Pacers’ front office immediately made it clear that ‘the only real avenue’ toward a deal would require Haliburton to be the centerpiece of the trade.
At the time of the deal, Fox was averaging just 21 points and 5.2 assists per game, shooting 24.8 percent from the perimeter and struggling to live up to his $160 million contract. Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle wanted a point guard who could ‘push the pace’ and be a high-end facilitator, Fox didn’t provide that.
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Tyrese Haliburton stats (Indiana Pacers): 19.5 PPG, 10.1 APG, 3.8 RPG, 1.5 APG, 48.2% FG, 38.6% 3PT, 1.93 Win Shares per 48 Minutes in 224 games played
While the Kings’ front office was hammered by NBA analysts and executives for trading Haliburton, the early returns were relatively positive. Fox earned his first All-Star selection and won Comeback Player of the Year during the 2022-’23 season and Sabonis helped the franchise snap one of the longest playoff droughts in NBA history. It spiraled after that.
Fox requested a trade in January, limiting the team’s options by making it clear he only wanted to be dealt to the San Antonio Spurs. Sacramento’s long-standing infatuation with Zach LaVine led to him being the centerpiece of the deal. With LaVine providing just a minor push over a disgruntled Fox, the Kings made it into the NBA Play-In Tournament and forfeited their top-12 protected first-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks.
Now, the general manager behind both trades is gone with Fox and Haliburton clearly in better situations for success than they would’ve had in Sacramento. As the Pacers and Spurs move forward as perennial contenders, the Kings seem to be headed toward another long-term rebuild.