According to longtime friend of the city of Sacramento, The Athletic’s Sam Amick, the Sacramento Kings are officially out on Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma:
Team sources say there have been no talks on the Kuzma front for months, and that the Kings have no interest in losing any of the rotation players who would need to be sent out to match his salary ($25 million this season before declining to over the course of the next three years). Even beyond Kuzma, all signs point to the Kings keeping their current core (and then some) intact while trying to add to it without losing any of their main rotation players.
Such a bold statement from a closely connected Kings source certainly seems to spell doom for any Kuzma-related acquisition wishes, and that also holds true with multiple reports being shared that the Wizards wish to keep their high-scoring forward past the deadline.
In addition to killing the Kuzma vibes, Amick reported that the Kings have been connected to several previously shared names – Dorian Finney-Smith, Royce O’Neale (who was just traded to the Phoenix Suns), and Delon Wright, but he also threw in one other name that has yet to be connected to Sacramento: Caleb Martin:
“While the Kings are known to have interest in a number of players who remain available, from Brooklyn’s Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O’Neale, to the Wizards’ Delon Wright (a former King) and Miami’s Caleb Martin, those aren’t the kinds of players to likely inspire them to give up too much of the draft stock they would need for a bigger move down the line. But those kinds of players, team sources tell The Athletic, are still in play.”
Similar to the other players on Amick’s list, Martin is a strong, multi-positional defender who would add a much-needed edge to the Kings on-court presence. The 28-year old wing has both started and come off the bench for the Miami Heat this season, and he’s currently averaging 10.2 points and 4.6 rebounds while shooting 36.4% from deep. As a fearless 3-and-D presence, Martin’s acquisition would make a lot of sense for Sacramento’s front office, although his cost may be as high as anyone else the Kings have been linked to in reports.
Stay tuned for further coverage of the NBA trade deadline, ending at noon Pacific time today.
