Projected by oddsmakers to be the worst team in the Western Conference in 2018/19, the Kings surpassed all expectations, emerging as one of the most entertaining young clubs in the league behind breakout seasons from De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield. The year wasn’t without the usual Sacramento drama, as an end-of-season coaching change proved, but the franchise finally appears to be pointed in the right direction after spending over a decade in the lottery.
Here’s where things currently stand for the Kings financially, as we continue our Offseason Salary Cap Digest series for 2019:
Guaranteed Salary
- Bogdan Bogdanovic ($8,529,386)
- Marvin Bagley ($8,556,120)
- Nemanja Bjelica ($6,825,000)
- De’Aaron Fox ($6,392,760)
- Buddy Hield ($4,861,208)
- Harry Giles ($2,578,800)
- Matt Barnes ($2,133,541) — Waived via stretch provision
- Caleb Swanigan ($2,033,160)
- Total: $41,909,975
Player Options
- Harrison Barnes ($25,102,512)
- Total: $25,102,512
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Yogi Ferrell ($3,150,000) 1
- Frank Mason ($1,618,520) 2
- B.J. Johnson ($1,416,852)
- Total: $6,185,372
Restricted Free Agents
- Willie Cauley-Stein ($6,265,631 qualifying offer / $14,090,625 cap hold): Bird rights
- Troy Williams (two-way qualifying offer / $1,443,842 cap hold): Non-Bird rights 3
- Total: $15,534,467
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Alec Burks ($17,304,773): Bird rights
- Kosta Koufos ($16,605,050): Bird rights
- Corey Brewer ($2,400,000): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $36,309,823
Projected Salary Cap: $109,000,000
Projected Tax Line: $132,000,000
Offseason Cap Outlook
- Realistic cap room projection: $38.4MM
- This projection may not be the most realistic outcome for the Kings, as it hinges on them only retaining their seven players on guaranteed contracts, plus Barnes, renouncing their free agents and waiving all their players on non-guaranteed salaries.
- If the Kings were to bring back Ferrell and Mason, their available cap room would dip to $35.4MM. If they were to retain both of those players and also keep Cauley-Stein’s cap hold on their books, that number would decline further, to $22.2MM.
- On the other hand, if Barnes decides to test the market, the Kings could theoretically get all the way up to $62.6MM in cap space by only keeping their seven players on guaranteed salaries.
Cap Exceptions Available
- Room exception: $4,760,000 4
Footnotes
- Ferrell’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after July 4.
- Mason’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 15.
- The salaries for two-way players don’t count against a team’s cap, but their cap holds do during the offseason.
- This is a projected value. If the Kings remain over the cap, they’d instead have access to the full mid-level exception ($9,246,000) and the bi-annual exception ($3,619,000).
Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are estimates based on salary cap projections and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders and RealGM was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The Kings seem like a team on the rise that just needs that one veteran to help the young guys. If Barnes opts in, which is highly likely, the best fit would probably be a big man to upgrade from WCS. I think the best fit would be Vucevic from Orlando, but there will be a lot of competition there. Another option would be DeAndre Jordan. He seems to be past his peak, but he still has some in the tank and could be a good mentor to Bagley. A couple of mid-level bench FAs like Elfrid Payton and Jeff Green to complement the young guys would be great too. This team will be interesting to watch for the next few years.
WCS is one of the best bigs in transition and his half court game is average. I’m not sure you can upgrade much and not break the bank
WCS needs to go. There’s better options out there that the Kings can obtain.
This team is on the brink of being a player in the playoffs if everything falls into place and they don’t make any silly moves.
If Barnes opts out (I believe he won’t), that would certainly help expedite the process. NV at center would be a nice addition – a Vlade type of player that I’m sure would resonate with NV signing with them. That backcourt looks solid and Bagley is just going to get better. This is a team to be reckoned with if the right moves are made.
Divac messed up by trading for Barnes. The results were predictable, 28-26 before Barnes, 11-17 with. No way he opts out. If the Kings are lucky, he will play for his next contract and make effort, like Kemba & Deangelo.