Sacramento Kings Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Kings Sign Robert Woodard II To Four-Year Deal

December 1st, 2020 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

1:00pm: Woodard’s first NBA deal will be a four-year contract with a $1.5MM guaranteed salary in year one, reports ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter links). It’ll feature a $3.3MM overall guaranteed, according to Marks. That sounds like two guaranteed seasons with a small partial guarantee in year three.

12:48pm: The Kings have made it official with one of their second-round picks, announcing that they’ve signed former Mississippi State forward Robert Woodard II to his first NBA contract.

After playing a modest role off the bench as a freshman in 2018/19, Woodard moved into Mississippi State’s starting lineup last season and took an impressive step forward as a sophomore, averaging 11.4 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 1.1 SPG. In 31 games (33.1 MPG), he posted an impressive .495 FG% and .429 3PT%.

Woodard, who declared for the draft as an early entrant, was selected with the 40th overall pick last month and was sent from Memphis to Sacramento as part of a draft-night trade.

Terms of Woodard’s deal aren’t yet known, but the players picked at No. 39 (Elijah Hughes) and No. 41 (Tre Jones) each got fully guaranteed salaries for the next two seasons, so I’d be surprised if Woodard doesn’t get a similar commitment from the Kings.

Assuming his 2020/21 salary is guaranteed, Woodard will be the 13th player on the roster with a full guarantee for the coming season. That would leave just two spots on the 15-man regular season roster for some combination of Frank Kaminsky, Glenn Robinson III, Chimezie Metu, and No. 43 overall pick Jahmi’us Ramsey. Sacramento does still have a two-way contract slot still open too, so I’d guess the team will try to sign Ramsey to a two-way deal.

Rockets To Sign KJ Martin To Four-Year Deal

November 30th, 2020 at 8:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Rockets are signing rookie KJ Martin, the son of former NBA player Kenyon Martin, to a multi-year contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

It’s a four-year contract with the first year fully guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon (Twitter link). The Rockets will use a portion of their mid-level exception to sign Martin.

Martin was the 52nd pick of the draft. Houston acquired the draft rights to the 6’7” forward from the Kings. He prepared for the draft at IMG Academy.

Kings Sign Glenn Robinson III

November 29th, 2020 at 9:13pm CST by JD Shaw

DECEMBER 2: The signing is official, tweets Sean Cunningham of KXTV in Sacramento.

NOVEMBER 29: The Kings have reached an agreement with free agent forward Glenn Robinson III, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). Robinson is signing a one-year, minimum-salary contract with a partial guarantee, reports Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link).

Robinson had attracted interest from a number of clubs before agreeing to terms with Sacramento, holding past experience with the Wolves, Sixers, Pacers, Pistons and Warriors in his career.

He averaged 11.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 28.8 minutes with Golden State and Philadelphia last season, appearing in 38 games with the Warriors before being dealt to the Sixers. The 26-year-old was drafted with the No. 40 overall pick back in 2014.

The Kings have had a busy offseason to date, signing De’Aaron Fox to a five-year extension and declining to match Bogdan Bogdanovic‘s offer sheet with the Hawks. The team also signed free agent big men Hassan Whiteside and Frank Kaminsky.

Kings Among Teams Hoping To Sign Glenn Robinson III

November 28th, 2020 at 5:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Kings are among a group of four teams that have expressed the most interest in adding Glenn Robinson III, according to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee.

Sources tell Anderson that the Lakers, Clippers and Jazz are considered Sacramento’s main competition to sign the free agent forward. Sources also say new Kings general manager Monte McNair and assistant GM Wes Wilcox have been diligent in their pursuit of Robinson.

Sacramento could offer regular playing time to Robinson, who is one of the top free agents still left on the market. The Kings need wing depth after declining to match the offer sheet Bogdan Bogdanovic received from the Hawks, and Robinson would get an opportunity to compete for back-up minutes at small forward.

Robinson, 26, averaged 11.7 points and shot 39.1% from three-point range last season in a combined 62 games with the Warriors and Sixers. Philadelphia acquired him at the trade deadline to add bench depth, but his numbers declined after the deal and he was barely used in the playoffs.

A second-round pick in 2014, Robinson has also played for the Timberwolves, Pacers and Pistons.

Kings Sign Lottery Pick Haliburton

November 27th, 2020 at 4:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Kings have signed their lottery pick, guard Tyrese Haliburton, according to a team press release.

Haliburton was the 12th overall pick in the draft. Assuming he received 120% of the rookie scale for his draft slot, as virtually all first-rounders do, Haliburton will make $17,878,995 over the next four seasons. His first-year salary will be $3,831,840.

Haliburton was one of the top point guards in the draft, though he could often play in two-point looks with the Kings. As a sophomore at Iowa State, he averaged 15.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 6.5 APG and 2.5 SPG and 36.7 MPG in 22 games before a wrist injury ended his season.

“We are thrilled to have drafted Tyrese and excited to welcome him to the Kings family,” GM Monte McNair said. “He is an incredibly talented athlete whose shooting, creative passing and ball handling skills combined with his ability to defend either guard position will be a valuable addition to our backcourt. Tyrese also has an engaging personality and is just the type of high character individual who fits the future of what we are building in Sacramento.”

Assessing The Kings' Offseason Moves

November 26th, 2020 at 6:45pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Kings may have been savvy to let shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic walk in restricted free agency, Jason Jones of The Athletic posits. The addition of promising rookie shooting guard Tyrese Haliburton via the 2020 draft made Bogdanovic superfluous to Sacramento’s long-term team-building plans.

The replacement of former Kings GM Vlade Divac with Monte McNair this summer also yielded a different assessment of Bogdanovic’s value with the still-developing club, Jones writes. Bogdanovic’s four-year, $72MM contract extension also would have put Sacramento, a team that has not made the NBA playoffs since 2006, well above the salary cap.

Jason Jones of The Athletic takes stock of Kings GM Monte McNair‘s patient approach to his first offseason in Sacramento. Jones suggests that McNair’s reticence to make a big splash on the free agent or trade market indicates a confidence in the development of the club’s young core.

Kings Sign Frank Kaminsky

November 26th, 2020 at 4:50pm CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 30: The deal is official, according to a press release issued by the Kings.

NOVEMBER 26: The Kings have agreed to sign free agent forward/center Frank Kaminsky to a one-year contract, his agent Kevin Bradbury tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Kaminsky’s one-year deal with Sacramento is non-guaranteed, per Jason Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Kaminsky, 27, averaged 9.7 PPG and 4.5 RPG on .450/.331/.678 shooting in 39 games (19.9 MPG) for Phoenix in 2019/20. A patella stress fracture shortened his season, however, and he played a very limited role during the Suns’ 8-0 run in the bubble at Walt Disney World. The team declined his $5MM option for 2020/21 last week.

Having lost Alex Len and Harry Giles in free agency, Sacramento has fortified its frontcourt by agreeing to a deal with Hassan Whiteside on Wednesday and now lining up a contract for Kaminsky.

The two incoming veterans will join a rotation that also features Richaun Holmes, Marvin Bagley, and Nemanja Bjelica up front.

Kings Re-Sign DaQuan Jeffries

November 26th, 2020 at 2:16pm CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 28: The signing is official, per team press release.

NOVEMBER 26: The Kings have agreed to re-sign guard/forward DaQuan Jeffries to a two-year, $3MM contract, his agents inform Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

It sounds like it’s a minimum-salary deal, which would be worth about $3.15MM over two years. Jeffries’ first year will be guaranteed, with a team option on year two, according to James Ham of NBC Sports California (Twitter link).

Jeffries, a former Tulsa standout, signed an Exhibit 10 contract with Orlando in 2019 after going undrafted. He was released by the Magic before the regular season began, but was claimed off waivers by the Kings, who converted him to a two-way contract.

The 23-year-old played out the full season on that deal, averaging 3.8 PPG and 1.4 RPG in 13 games (10.8 MPG) for Sacramento. He saw more action for the club’s G League affiliate, recording 16.5 PPG and 6.9 RPG on .460/.342/.705 shooting for the Stockton Kings in 27 games (31.0 MPG).

Jeffries received a qualifying offer from Sacramento last week, which made him a restricted free agent. He wouldn’t have been able to sign outright with another team without the Kings getting a chance to match the offer.

Kings Sign Chimezie Metu To Camp Deal

November 25th, 2020 at 5:08pm CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 28, 12:55pm: Metu has officially signed with the Kings, according to a team press release.

NOVEMBER 25, 5:08pm: The Kings are signing former Spurs big man Chimezie Metu, according to James Ham of NBC Sports California (Twitter link). Although Metu will get a training camp deal, he’ll have a shot to earn a spot on Sacramento’s regular season roster.

Metu, a 2018 second-round pick, was never able to establish consistent playing time in San Antonio during his two years with the team. He appeared in 47 games over the last two seasons, averaging 2.3 PPG and 1.5 RPG in 5.3 minutes per contest.

The Spurs released Metu last week and he cleared waivers on Sunday, clearing the path for him to sign outright with the Kings.

In Sacramento, Metu will be competing to earn a depth spot in a frontcourt that currently features the likes of Richaun Holmes, Marvin Bagley, Nemanja Bjelica, and, as of today, veteran center Hassan Whiteside, who is reportedly signing a one-year deal with the Kings.

Hassan Whiteside Signs With Kings

November 25th, 2020 at 4:55pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

NOVEMBER 27: The Kings have made it official, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed Whiteside.

NOVEMBER 25: Center Hassan Whiteside will reunite with his first NBA club. The big man is set to ink a one-year deal with the Kings, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets that the agreement is for a veteran’s minimum. Whiteside is coming off a four-year, $98.4MM maximum contract extension he signed with the Heat in 2016.

The Heat traded Whiteside to Portland in the summer of 2019 to clear cap space for incoming free agent Jimmy Butler. He had a productive year for the Trail Blazers, for whom he started during most of the 2019/20 season as center Jusuf Nurkic used most of the season to rehabilitate from compound fractures to the tibia and fibula of his left leg. In 30 MPG across 67 games with Portland (including 61 starts), Whiteside averaged 15.5 PPG, 13.5 RPG, and a league-leading 2.9 BPG, while shooting 62.1% from the field. Wojnarowski also notes that Whiteside’s 25.07 PER was good for the eighth best such stat in the NBA.

The 6’11” big man out of Marshall was initially drafted by Sacramento with the No. 33 pick in 2010. He spent his first two NBA seasons with the Kings from 2010-2012. Whiteside logged time in the NBA’s then-D League (now the G League) and overseas before Miami took a flyer on him in 2014, where he quickly developed into an athletic force at the next level.

Whiteside marks new Kings GM Monte McNair‘s first free agent addition to the Sacramento roster. Presumably Whiteside will be expected to add interior depth behind oft-injured starter Marvin Bagley. Earlier this week, the Kings opted not to match the four-year, $72MM offer sheet tendered to restricted free agent shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic by the Hawks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.