Sacramento Kings Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Unsigned Draft Picks: Pacific Division

July 5th, 2016 at 9:36pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the 2016 NBA draft now in the books, the term draft-and-stash will be mentioned quite often in regard to international players and late second-rounders. While some of these athletes will eventually sign with an NBA team, it seems like the majority of them stay overseas and never make it to the league. Those players in the latter category aren’t without value as they become trade assets for the teams holding their rights.

While many players fail to work out the way teams expect them to, they can at least become tradeable assets for teams that don’t want to part with a future second-round pick in a deal. Each team must give up something in a trade, which is why many swaps include top-55 protected second-round picks. Older draft rights held players who clearly will never come over to the NBA are essentially the same as flipping those heavily protected second-rounders, for all intents and purposes.

Listed below are the current unsigned draftees for the teams of the Pacific Division. These listings don’t include players selected in this year’s draft:

Golden State Warriors

Mladen Sekularac — Selected No. 55 overall in 2002.

Los Angeles Clippers

Maarty Leunen — Selected No. 54 overall in 2008.

Los Angeles Lakers

Chinemelu Elonu — Selected No. 59 overall in 2009.
Ater Majok — Selected No. 58 overall in 2011.

Phoenix Suns

Alec Brown — Selected No. 50 overall in 2014.
Dwayne Collins — Selected No. 60 overall in 2010.
Ron Ellis — Selected No. 49 overall in 1992.
Milos Vujanic — Selected No. 36 overall in 2002.

Sacramento Kings

Dejan Bodrioga — Selected No. 51 overall in 1995.
Bogdan Bogdanovic — Selected No. 27 overall in 2014.
Arturas Gudaitis — Selected No. 47 overall in 2015.
Luka Mitrovic — Selected No. 60 overall in 2015.
Alex Oriakhi — Selected No. 57 overall in 2013.

Kings Waive Caron Butler, Duje Dukan

July 4th, 2016 at 4:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Kings have waived small forward Caron Butler and power forward Duje Dukan, sources told Shams Charania of The Vertical.

That frees up more roster space, though Butler had already exercised his player option worth $1,551,659 for next season. Deleting Dukan from the roster gives them a little more cap room, since Dukan’s $874,636 contract was not guaranteed.

Butler might have trouble finding a new team if he doesn’t retire, though Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical believes the Heat might have some interest. The Kings obviously would have moved his contract if they could have found a taker. The 36-year-old barely saw the floor during the 2015/16 season, playing a total of 176 minutes in 17 games for the Kings. Most of his absences were primarily the result of DNP-CDs.

Dukan signed with the Kings after going undrafted last June. The University of Wisconsin product spent most of the season with the Kings’ D-League affiliate, the Reno Bighorns, before appearing in one April game with Sacramento. Dukan can still play on the Kings’ summer team even though he’s been waived, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee notes.

Kings To Sign Matt Barnes

July 3rd, 2016 at 7:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

Troy Taormina / USA TODAY Sports

Free agent forward Matt Barnes will sign with the Kings, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The deal is for $12MM over two seasons, with a player option on the second year, according to James Ham of CSNCalifornia (Twitter link). Sacramento rescinded its qualifying offer to Seth Curry earlier in the day to create room for Barnes.

Barnes, who spent one year in Sacramento during the 2004/05 season, played for the Grizzlies last year, averaging 10.0 points and 5.5 rebounds in 76 games. He earned $3,542,500 during his lone season in Memphis.

It’s uncertain how the signing will affect the Kings’ plan for Rudy Gay, who is rumored to be the subject of trade talks with the Pacers. Sacramento gave up another wing player on draft night when it traded Marco Belinelli to the Hornets.

Kings To Rescind QO For Seth Curry

July 3rd, 2016 at 7:12pm CST by Arthur Hill

7:12pm: The Kings rescinded Curry’s offer so they could sign another veteran player, tweets James Ham of CSNCalifornia.

5:28pm: The Kings plan to rescind their qualifying offer for Seth Curry, making him an unrestricted free agent, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Curry would have made 1,215,696 under the offer

Curry developed into a rotational player for Sacramento this season, appearing in 44 games and starting nine. He averaged 6.8 points per night and shot 45% from 3-point range. He made $947,276 during 2015/16.

The Kings considered Curry expendable after they agreed to terms with free agent point guard Garrett Temple earlier today.

Kings To Sign Garrett Temple

July 3rd, 2016 at 3:06pm CST by Will Joseph

The Kings and shooting guard Garrett Temple have agreed on a three-year deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports. Sam Amick of USA Today Sports tweets that the deal is worth $24MM in total. The third year is a player option, Amick adds.

It became clear after the Wizards acquired Trey Burke that Washington had no plans to re-sign Temple, who is 30. Temple, however, did provide the Wizards with solid production. He averaged a career best 7.3 points per game in a career-high 43 starts. The move could end up being a shrewd one for the Kings. Temple is a solid reserve player with versatility, as James Ham of CSNBayArea.com tweets.

Temple earned the veteran minimum for the last two seasons. He is now obviously cashing in big, comparatively speaking. The Celtics, Nuggets, Kings, Pelicans and Hawks all reached out to Temple, according to J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com.

And-Ones: Gasol, Ginobili, Barnes

July 3rd, 2016 at 2:40pm CST by Will Joseph

The market for Pau Gasol appears to be around $18-22MM per year with the Raptors, Bulls, Blazers, Wolves and Spurs among the teams talking with him, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link). Of those teams, the Wolves have made an “aggressive” two-year offer to reunite Gasol with his former coach Tom Thibodeau, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated reports. It is unclear whether or not Gasol will wait for Kevin Durant to make a decision before pulling the trigger on his own move, Shelburne adds. The Blazers may have a two-year deal worth $40MM out there for Gasol, per Marc Stein of ESPN.com.

Here’s more news from around the league:

Manu Ginobili, who announced he intends to play this season, plans to re-sign with the Spurs, but the two sides have yet to begin negotiations, Ginobili’s agent Herb Rudoy told Jeff McDonald of of the San Antonio Express-News. Rudoy has fielded calls from multiple teams gauging interest in his client since Ginobili’s announcement, McDonald reports. However, most teams strongly believe the veteran will reach a deal with the Spurs, McDonald adds.
Matt Barnes has received interest from the Clippers, Kings, Mavs and Warriors, Shelburne reports.
Derrick Williams‘ future with the Knicks is uncertain because New York could have only about $5MM in available cap space and Williams would likely be able to fetch a larger sum elsewhere, Ian Begley of ESPN.com relays.

Western Notes: Durant, Rondo, Crawford, Mack

July 3rd, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant has concluded his meeting with the Heat, tweets David Aldridge of TNT. The session lasted about two hours, according to Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Durant plans to meet with representatives from the Thunder this afternoon before making his final decision. He also talked to the Warriors, Clippers, Spurs and Celtics this weekend, although L.A. is now out of the running.

There’s more news from the Western Conference:

The Kings are “moving on” from free agent point guard Rajon Rondo, according to Aldridge (Twitter link). Aldridge says Sacramento is comfortable with Darren Collison as its starter and will seek a backup in free agency.
The Sixers have made a “significant” offer to Clippers free agent combo guard Jamal Crawford, tweets Dan Woike of Orange County Register, and several other teams are interested. The reigning Sixth Man of the Year has been contacted by the Kings, Hawks, Nets, Mavericks, Celtics and others, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
The Jazz have to make a decision on point guard Shelvin Mack this week, tweets Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. Mack’s $2.4MM salary for next season will become fully guaranteed on Thursday. Mack became the starter in Utah after a midseason trade from Atlanta and averaged 12.7 points and 5.3 assists in 28 games. The Jazz are trading backup point guard Trey Burke to the Wizards.
The Timberwolves are interested in Jordan Hill, but Pau Gasol remains their top priority in free agency, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.

And-Ones: Durant, Gasol, Crawford

July 2nd, 2016 at 10:39pm CST by Will Joseph

Kevin Durant has told teams he is meeting with that his decision will be made within the next 24-36 hours, Chris Broussard of ESPN.com relays (on Twitter). Durant’s meeting with the Celtics, one that reportedly featured Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, ended just after 6:30pm, according to David Aldridge of NBA.com. Aldridge also tweets that Durant will meet with the Heat Sunday before meeting again with the Thunder. He is then expected to decide. According to Broussard, however, no decision has been made on whether Durant will meet again with the Thunder (Twitter link). Durant has also met with the Warriors, Spurs and Clippers.

Here’s more from a busy day around the league …

The Raptors have emerged as another suitor for Pau Gasol, who may look to make a decision after Durant finds a home, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. The Wolves, Blazers and Spurs have expressed interest in Gasol, too, Stein relays (on Twitter).
Al Horford‘s four-year, $113MM deal with the Celtics includes a player option after the third year, according to his agent Jason Glushon, Shelburne reports (ESPN Now link).
The Clippers formally offered Jamal Crawford a contract on Saturday, according to Shelburne (ESPN Now link). The Wolves checked in on Crawford Saturday, but they are not close to offering, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets.
After losing Horford in free agency, the Hawks are expected to halt trade talks and will keep Paul Millsap, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
The Kings hold a team option for the second year on both of the two-year agreements for Arron Afflalo and Anthony Tolliver, James Ham of CSNBayArea.com tweets.
The Pelicans have expressed interest in Raymond Felton and New Orleans could be competition for the Mavs, who would like to re-sign Felton, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders tweets.
The Mavs, Wolves, Pelicans and Spurs are among the teams that have expressed interest in unrestricted free agent Thomas Robinson, Kennedy tweets.

Pacers Discuss Acquiring Rudy Gay

July 2nd, 2016 at 5:49pm CST by Will Joseph

The Pacers and Kings have talked recently about a trade involving Sacramento small forward Rudy Gay, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). The Kings have interest in landing Monta Ellis, whom they eyed in free agency last summer, in return, but the Pacers prefer to deal Rodney Stuckey, Stein tweets.

The Pacers reportedly spoke to Sacramento about a possible Gay trade before they acquired Thaddeus Young last week, which suggests their interest is as strong as Stein indicates. The Kings are becoming increasingly willing to move Gay in a trade, according to multiple reports. Gay, who turns 30 in August, has been one of the Kings’ go-to scorers over the past two-plus seasons, though his PPG dipped to 17.2 in 2015/16, his lowest mark since his rookie season. Still, Gay contributed 6.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game, and posted decent shooting percentages, making 46.3% of his shots from the floor and 34.4% from downtown.

Gay’s contract has two years left on it, but the final year is a player option, so he looks poised to hit the open market in 2017, assuming he has a solid 2016/17 season. Teams may not be willing to give up a significant return for one year of Gay, but his $13.333MM salary certainly looks reasonable compared to some of the prices being paid in free agency.

Kings To Sign Arron Afflalo

July 2nd, 2016 at 5:12pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Brad Mills/USA TODAY Sports Images

5:12pm: The second year is only partially guaranteed for $1.5MM, Sam Amick of USA Today reports (Twitter link).

2:02pm: The Kings and unrestricted free agent shooting guard Arron Afflalo have agreed to a deal that will land him in Sacramento, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (Twitter link). It’s going to be a two-year, $25MM pact for Afflalo, Wojnarowski adds.

There wasn’t much chatter attached to Afflalo prior to this deal coming together. The veteran opted out of his contract with the Knicks and the $8MM he was slated to earn in 2016/17, and the move has paid off with Afflalo increasing his annual salary to $12.5MM courtesy of Sacramento. One would assume he is joining the Kings as a starter, given his reported disdain for the reserve role the Knicks placed him in last season. Though, a $4.5MM per season raise may make coming off the bench more palatable, if that is to be his role.

Afflalo appeared in 71 games for the Knicks in 2015/16 and averaged 12.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 33.4 minutes per outing. He shot .443/.382/.840 from the field on the campaign.