After the Seattle Mariners qualified for the MLB Playoffs this season, the Sacramento Kings own the longest playoff drought among the 4 major North American sports, as they have already missed the NBA Playoffs for 16 straight seasons. With the likes of the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers retooling their lineup, it just gets tougher for Sacramento to crack a playoff spot for this upcoming season.
Their squad will be led by Kentucky guard De'Aaron Fox and Lithuanian big man Domantas Sabonis, along with key role players in Harrison Barnes and Keegan Murray. Adding two phenomenal shooters in Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter was brilliant for the organization. Even with this nucleus, it will be tough for the Kings to reach the playoffs, thus these are a few trade options they can tinker around with.
Harrison Barnes
It is an open secret that Sacramento is still in the rebuilding stage, building around Fox and Sabonis. These two budding stars are younger than Harrison Barnes, and Barnes does not seem to be on a similar timeline with his Sacramento teammates. Furthermore, he is on an expiring deal already, so there seems to be no incentive for the Kings to sign him to a long-term extension.
Harrison Barnes had a hot start last year, thus proving that he is still capable to be a fourth or fifth guy for an organization that is seriously contending for a championship. The abilities and repertoire that Barnes can bring to some of these playoff teams would be terrific, so the Kings must figure out the perfect juncture to swing a deal for him. Even with the possible trade of Barnes, Sacramento will be able to receive a first-round pick at the very least for the versatile and athletic forward.
In 2020 and 2021, Richaun Holmes was stellar for Sacramento as the energy bunny who was a massive threat as an interior presence and rim protector. A slow start and off-court issues in 2022 may have caused Holmes to struggle and not take another leap last season. He struggled immensely, especially with the trade deadline acquisition of Domantas Sabonis.
It has been obvious that playing both Sabonis and Holmes simultaneously is not the way to go for coach Mike Brown, so Holmes slides down to the bench of Sacramento. Paying an individual over $10 million to play 15-20 minutes a night will not be worth it for the Kings, so it would be more plausible to add a combo forward or secondary ball handler alongside De'Aaron Fox.
Having these two role players in Sacramento has been pleasing for the fanbase, but this season might just be the best time to deal them to playoff-contending franchises. Both Harrison Barnes and Richaun Holmes can still help Sacramento immensely over the next few seasons. Still, the ceiling of this current roster is not any more than just a first-round NBA playoff appearance.
It will be an enormous sacrifice to let go of two rotational pieces for more future draft compensation and young assets, but it seems like they have no other choice. Focusing on player development and internal growth with young guys like Keegan Murray and Davion Mitchell is the way to go, and maturing as young guys could propel this squad to a play-in berth this year.
Qualifying for the play-in tournament is more realistic for the Sacramento Kings, but that is still a significant step in their development.
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