Kings Looking To Make “Win-Now” Moves
Not making the playoffs since 2006, the Sacramento Kings have been aggressive in their pursuit of talent ahead of the trade deadline and have had their attention on 76ers’ All-Star Ben Simmons since the offseason.
However, it seems like their pursuit of Simmons has come to an end after Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Friday that Kings are turning their attention elsewhere ahead of the trade deadline.
Now, there is a lot of speculation of who the Kings could pursue, but the two names that have come up most recently in connection to them are Jerami Grant and Domantas Sabonis.
According to Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer, the Kings are expected to make some type of a “significant move” ahead of February’s trade deadline and they are pursuing Pistons’ forward Jerami Grant.
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Finding talent to go along with De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton is a must for the Kings moving forward, but the idea of pursuing Jerami Grant is a long-shot at this point given the value that the Pistons have on him.
If traded, Grant wants to go somewhere that he would not only be a focal point, but could receive a contract extension upwards of $100M in the offseason. He would absolutely hold a substantial sized role in Sacramento next to Fox and Haliburton, but Sacramento is tight on cap space right now and may not be able to give Grant the contract he wants.
Not to mention, the Pistons are going to want at least one first-round pick and a high-level young talent for Jerami Grant, two things a rebuilding franchise like the Kings may not want to give up at this time.
NBA Analysis Network’s own Evan Massey reported that the Kings are working towards “re-engaging” trade talks surrounding Pacers’ forward Domantas Sabonis and while this is something to keep an eye on, the same problem could occur in regards to trading for Jerami Grant.
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The Kings best assets at this point are Harrison Barnes, Buddy Hield, Richaun Holmes and Marvin Bagley III. The Pacers may not be interested in any of those players in exchange for Sabonis, especially since they need to “re-tool” as a franchise.
Grant and Sabonis are the two names mentioned as possible “buy” targets for the Kings leading up to the trade deadline, but it is equally as likely that the Kings will be “sellers” this season.
Hield and Bagley have been rumored trade assets dating back to the offseason and veteran Harrison Barnes has received a sizable amount of interest over the last few weeks. The Athletic’s Sam Amick mentioned Barnes as a potential target of the Utah Jazz recently.
Sacramento has been rebuilding for over a decade now and it does appear that their main goal ahead of the trade deadline is to finally move in a positive direction for once. Getting out of big contracts and possibly adding high-level talents in the process will go a long way in finally gaining some sort of relevance in the NBA again.
