There is interest around the league in shooting guard Ben McLemore and with teams aware that he is available, the Kings have been fielding trade inquiries in advance of Thursday’s NBA draft, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets. The 23-year-old saw his playing time diminish this past season under former coach George Karl, with McLemore only averaging 21.2 minutes per outing, down from the 32.6 he notched in 2014/15. If Sacramento does find a taker for McLemore, it would make him the second former lottery pick the team has shipped out in as many years, with the Kings sending 2014 first-rounder Nik Stauskas to the Sixers prior to the start of the 2015/16 campaign.
Here’s the latest from the Pacific Division:
- Fresh off of their crushing defeat at the hands of the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, pending free agents Harrison Barnes and Festus Ezeli say they haven’t begun to contemplate their offseason strategy, nor have they thought about where they might be playing next season, Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle relays. If Golden State extends the players qualifying offers, with Barnes’ being worth $5,194,227 and $3,013,123 for Ezeli, the duo would become restricted free agents and the Warriors would have the opportunity to match any offer they were to receive.
- The Kings are closing in on an agreement with Darrick Martin that would make him the new coach of the Reno Bighorns, their D-League affiliate, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical relays (via Twitter).
- While the Clippers are expected to look to fill their most glaring roster needs via free agency, coach/executive Doc Rivers has two draft picks to work with for the first time in his tenure with the team and will look to add bench depth with them, Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times writes.
who’d you rather have: McLemore or Crabbe?
Crabbe. Easy. I like McLemore though. Maybe Sixers trade the #26 pick for him?
I think there’s going to be a flurry of trades as there’s just so much money and so little talent in the FA market.
That’s probably fair value in a normal year but I think they’d get another asset maybe a 2nd rounder a late first like Philly’s 26. It’s so hard to judge how much of Mac’s progress was stunted die to the horrible Sacto environment and how much is just him not developing…
Crabbe
Crabbe. McLemore’s court sense is terrible and doesn’t offer much in terms of intangibles. Granted, McLemore regressed last year due to the dysfunction of the Kings management and George Karl’s coaching.
Crabbe was super efficient in his limited minutes and is a more consistent shooter.
Mclemore is only 23 and could flourish in the right organization and with proper coaching kind Crabbe has received.
#9 for Greg Monroe?
I really like him as a 28 minute guy, consistent, professional, efficient…
Yea i like that deal, maybe toss him at PF, so the raps can fill the need there. I would also love to see norman powell as a starter next year, he showed us what he could do near the end of the season, when they rested lowry n derozan he was the go to guy.
Toronto would probably have to throw another piece in. Maybe Patrick Patterson? While I think the draft has depth, I don’t know if the draft is going to generate a whole lot of good players. Monroe is much much better and more valuable than whoever the Bucks could get at 9.
I doubt the Bucks can get a top-10 pick for Monroe. If they are looking for a pick, how about No.15 to the Celtics?