Sacramento Kings Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Kings Waive Deyonta Davis

September 22nd, 2018 at 4:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Kings have waived center Deyonta Davis, who was acquired from the Grizzlies in July, tweets Marc J. Spears of ESPN. The team has confirmed the move on its website.

Davis was waived because Kings officials want to spend training camp focusing on players who are likely to make the final roster or play for their G League team in Stockton, Spears adds (Twitter link). Davis didn’t appear ticketed for either destination.

Sacramento sent Garrett Temple to the Grizzlies on July 17 in exchange for Davis, Ben McLemore and cash. Memphis took Davis with the 31st pick in the 2016 draft, but he was a disappointment in his two seasons there, averaging 4.3 PPG and 3.2 RPG in 98 games.

The Kings still must pay Davis his $1,544,951 salary for the upcoming season. The move leaves them with 17 players on the roster heading into training camp.

Southeast Notes: Dedmon, Anderson, Wade, Pope, Hornets

September 20th, 2018 at 5:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Center Dewayne Dedmon and swingman Justin Anderson will not be cleared for Hawks training camp, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets. Dedmon suffered an avulsion fracture in his left ankle earlier this month and shed his walking boot last week. Dedmon, who will be an unrestricted free agent next summer, will be reevaluated next week, Vivlamore continues. Anderson had surgery June 29th on his left leg due to recurring tibial stress syndrome. Anderson, who was acquired from the Sixers in a three-team deal in July, will be re-evaluated in two weeks, Vivlamore adds.

We have more from around the Southeast Division:

The addition of Dwyane Wade complicates the Heat’s rotation, as Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel notes. With Tyler Johnson, Dion Waiters, Josh Richardson, Wayne Ellington, Rodney McGruder and Derrick Jones Jr. along with Wade, the Heat could field a lineup of shooting guards and still have a couple left over, Winderman points out. Even though Wade agreed to the $2.4MM veteran’s minimum, the Heat have major luxury tax concerns as well, Winderman writes in another piece. They’ll have to shed approximately $6.3MM in payroll to get below the tax, Winderman adds.
The Magic have hired Bill Pope as director of pro personnel, Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports tweets. Pope held a similar position with the Kings front office. Marc Stein of the New York Times reported last week that Orlando was closing to hiring Pope.
Getting more out of second-year guard Malik Monk and dividing minutes at center among Cody Zeller, Willy Hernangomez, Bismack Biyombo and Frank Kaminsky are a couple of the storylines to watch with the Hornets this season. Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer breaks down the top 10 storylines for Charlotte.

Southeast Rumors: Waiters, Dedmon, Pope, Satoransky

September 14th, 2018 at 5:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Heat shooting guard Dion Waiters may not be ready for the beginning of the regular season, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Teammate Briante Weber told Jackson that Waiters, who underwent ankle surgery in January, has not participated in any contact work or pickup games with his teammates. With Dwyane Wade continuing to waffle on whether he’ll re-sign with the team, Miami could pursue other free agent options, Jackson adds, with Jamal Crawford, Mario Chalmers and Joe Johnson among a pool of potential targets.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Hawks center Dewayne Dedmon, who suffered an avulsion fracture in his left ankle last week, has shed his walking boot, according to a team press release. He will now participate in weight-bearing rehabilitation and then be re-evaluated in two weeks. Dedmon, who will make $7.2MM this season, will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.
The Magic are close to hiring Bill Pope as their director of pro personnel, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. Pope currently holds a similar position with the Kings.
Tomas Satoransky will enter camp as the Wizards’ backup point guard but there’s no guarantee he’ll remain in the rotation, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington writes in a player profile. Satoransky had trouble holding onto that spot last season and newcomer Austin Rivers and Troy Brown Jr. can play the point behind John Wall if needed. There’s also more depth at the wing, reducing the chances of Satoransky seeing action at those positions, Hughes adds.

Skal Labissiere Has Best Offseason Yet

September 12th, 2018 at 4:04pm CST by Austin Kent

There’s no shortage of intriguing big men on the Kings roster but one oft-forgotten frontcourt project is Skal Labissiere. Kyle Ramos of the team’s official site writes that this offseason has been 22-year-old’s best since entering the NBA in 2016.

How Yogi Ferrell Fits In With The Kings

September 9th, 2018 at 1:52pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

By waiting out the initial wave of free agency, the Kings were able to add another young rotational player in the backcourt, further bolstering their depth at guard, writes James Ham of NBC Sports. In Ham’s training camp profile on Yogi Ferrell, he notes that Ferrell’s speed, quickness and knack for scoring make him one of the team’s significant additions in the offseason.

Ferrell initially agreed to a deal to return to the Mavericks, but backed out and signed a two-year, $6.2MM deal with the Kings, the second year being non-guaranteed. The 25-year-old, who is entering his third season in the league, is coming off a solid – if unspectacular – season with the Mavericks in which he averaged 10.2 points, 3.o rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, playing a career-high 27.8 minutes per game.

While the Kings have several capable guards to fill backcourt minutes, Ferrell should open the season as the team’s primary backup point guard and may fill in at both guard positions if injuries strike. With De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, Frank Mason, Ben McLemore and Bogdan Bogdanovic all capable of playing in the backcourt, Ferrell will likely see a decrease in minutes and usage this season.

In a pinch, Ferrell can be the spark-plug scoring guard off the bench, a role Sacramento could certainly use in the upcoming season. With the additions of Nemanja Bjelica and Marvin Bagley alongside Ferrell, the Kings were able to add to their young core and boost their offensive potential in the offseason.

Team USA Announces Camp Roster For September World Cup Qualifiers

September 3rd, 2018 at 1:27pm CST by Luke Adams

Fourteen players will participate in a Las Vegas training camp beginning this Thursday, USA Basketball announced today in a press release. Of those 14 players, 12 will be named to Team USA’s roster for the club’s upcoming qualifying games for the 2019 FIBA World Cup.

This set of games – the first window for the second round of qualifiers – will take place later this month. Team USA will face Uruguay on September 14, then play against Panama on September 17.

The following players will be vying for Team USA roster spots for these qualifying contests:

Bryce Alford, G
Dwayne Bacon, SG
V.J. Beachem, F
Jordan Crawford, SG
Henry Ellenson, F/C
Reggie Hearn, SG
Isaiah Hicks, PF
Dakari Johnson, C
Frank Mason III, PG
Ben Moore, F
Chasson Randle, PG
Travis Trice, SG
Jameel Warney, PF
Derrick White, PG

In the first round of qualifying games for the 2019 World Cup, Team USA was made up predominantly of G League players. That’s the case to some extent again this time, with guys like Hearn and Warney returning. However, many of the players this time around are currently under contract with NBA teams, including Bacon (Hornets), Ellenson (Pistons), Hicks (Knicks), Mason (Kings), Trice (Bucks), and White (Spurs).

“With our September second-round games marking the start of the most critical part of the World Cup Qualifying, I think it is imperative for us to look for players who possess mental fortitude, who are tough, and who have experience,” said Team USA head coach Jeff Van Gundy. “All of our second-round games are going to very, very difficult and competitive battles. Argentina, Panama and Uruguay are all really good and well coached.”

The second round of the World Cup qualifiers will take place over three windows of competition in September, November, and February. Team USA will play two games apiece vs. Argentina, Panama, and Uruguay during that stretch.

Having posted a 5-1 record during the first round of qualifiers, Team USA is tied for first with Argentina in Group E, which is made up of six teams. If Team USA remains in the top three of the Group E standings by the end of February’s games, the squad will qualify for the 2019 World Cup, which will take place in China next September.

Former Kings Employee Accused Of Stealing Funds

August 30th, 2018 at 5:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jeffrey R. David, the former chief revenue officer for the Kings, is under suspicion of diverting $13.4MM from two team sponsors, according to Sam Stanton and Darrell Smith of The Sacramento Bee. David allegedly used the money to buy beachfront property in Southern California.

David is being investigated by the FBI and federal prosecutors, who say he set up a money-laundering scheme that took $9MM from the Golden 1 Credit Union and an additional $4.4MM from Kaiser Permanente Foundation.

No criminal charges have been filed, and the reporters weren’t able to get a comment from David. However, the Kings issued a statement confirming the investigation.

“Last week, we alerted federal law enforcement to suspicious financial transactions involving a former Kings employee, Jeff David,” the team said in its statement. “That investigation is underway and on Monday, U.S. Department of Justice authorities began the formal process of recovering and seizing the properties involved in the investigation.

“We appreciate the swift action on behalf of the officials at the FBI and U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California McGregor Scott as they work to complete this investigation and we will take all appropriate action once it is complete.”

David left the team June 1 when his position was eliminated. He currently serves as chief revenue officer for the Heat.

William Portanova, an attorney for the Kings, said the organization contacted federal officials as soon as it became aware of the situation. He offered assurances that all the missing money is being recovered. Team officials are expected to brief their ownership group on the progress of the investigation tomorrow morning.

Two sources told The Sacramento Bee that the cash in question was part of advertising contracts the companies signed with the team, including naming rights for the Golden 1 Center. David, who was in charge of negotiating ad contracts and corporate partnerships, allegedly asked for advance payments from the two companies and diverted that money into a company he set up called Sacramento Sports Partners LLC.

The Heat also issued a statement today and have placed David on leave while the probe continues, relays Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel (Twitter link).

“We are aware of the investigation of Jeff David, which focuses on events that took place prior to his joining our team,” the statement read. “We are fully cooperating with the authorities. Jeff David is on leave, pending the outcome of the investigation.”

Front Office Hires Announced

August 28th, 2018 at 9:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Kings announced a number of hires to the front office staff in a team press release. Teena Murray has been named Senior Director of Athlete Health and Performance. Other hires to the training staff include Mike Roncarati as Head of Prevention and Reconditioning; Joe Resendez as Head Athletic Trainer; Jesse Green as Performance Analyst. Other additions and promotions include Elizabeth Ramsey as Director of Basketball Operations and Intelligence; Gene Cross as Director of Amateur Scouting; Chris Alpert and Acie Law as regional scouts; and Robbie Lemons as Scouting Coordinator.

Kyle Singler Among This Week’s Stretch Candidates

August 27th, 2018 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

As we detailed on Friday, NBA teams have until August 31 to waive players and stretch their 2018/19 cap hits over multiple years. If a player is released after August 31, his current cap hit will remain unchanged, and only the subsequent years of his contract can be stretched.

With just a few more days for teams to stretch 2018/19 salaries, Thunder swingman Kyle Singler looks like the top candidate to be waived this week, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (via Twitter).

Three factors are working against Singler and making him a prime release candidate. For one, he fell out of Oklahoma City’s rotation entirely in 2017/18, appearing in just 12 games and playing only 59 total minutes for the season. Secondly, he’s essentially on an expiring contract, since his $5.3MM+ salary for 2019/20 is non-guaranteed. And finally, the Thunder currently have the largest projected tax bill in the NBA, meaning waiving Singler could create substantial immediate savings for the franchise.

Currently, the Thunder have a total team salary of $149.58MM, with a projected tax bill of $93.19MM. If they were to waive Singler, who has a $4,996,000 salary, they could stretch his cap hit across five seasons due to his non-guaranteed second year, reducing this season’s cap charge to just $999,200. That would bring the Thunder’s team salary down to $145.58MM and their projected tax bill to about $73.79MM, creating $23MM+ in total savings.

Outside of Singler, there aren’t many obvious stretch candidates around the NBA. Other projected taxpayers could consider similar moves to save some money, but many of those clubs don’t have players on expiring contracts that they’d want to release. The Wizards, with Jason Smith and his expiring $5.45MM salary, may be one team to watch.

Another motive for a team to stretch a player’s 2018/19 salary would be to open up more cap room. However, there aren’t many clubs that can create meaningful cap space at this point in the offseason, and there’s little incentive to do so anyway, given the lack of players worth spending it on. The Kings (Iman Shumpert or others) and Suns (Darrell Arthur or Tyson Chandler) could open up a chunk of cap room by stretching well-paid veterans, but I’d be surprised if they cut into their projected space for 2019 and/or 2020 by doing so.

Ben McLemore Clarifies National Anthem Comments

August 26th, 2018 at 6:18pm CST by clarkcrum

A report from TMZ over the weekend made it seem as though Kings guard Ben McLemore was unsupportive of NFL players kneeling for the national anthem. However, according to James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area, McLemore says his words were taken out of context.

McLemore was asked how he felt about ESPN not airing the national anthem on Monday Night Football this year. He responded that it’s important to represent the United States and that the NFL players’ message may be getting lost.

This morning, McLemore released a statement clarifying that although he believes in standing for the anthem, he does not believe that players who take a knee are disrespecting the United States.

McLemore, 25, was acquiring by the Kings this summer in a trade that saw Garrett Temple sent to the Grizzlies. Looking to turn his career around after being drafted No. 7 overall in 2013, it’s unlikely that he was too excited about such negative media attention this offseason.