All the feel-good vibes surrounding the Sacramento Kings franchise ever since they snapped their 17-year postseason drought appears to be gone. The Kings fired head coach Mike Brown over a week ago after a rough start to the 2024-25 season, and there seems to be plenty of uncertainty surrounding the team — current three-game winning streak notwithstanding. And with Sacramento lagging behind in a congested Western Conference, the vultures are circling them regarding a De'Aaron Fox trade even though they haven't put out a notice that they're about to sell.

Nonetheless, teams are doing their due diligence and gauging the Kings' willingness to trade Fox away, especially when he only has a year left on his contract following the 2024-25 campaign. Fox has been surprisingly nonchalant in the aftermath of Brown's firing, and some fans think this suggests an eventual departure for the 27-year-old point guard, which means that the Kings could get ahead of the situation by entertaining a potential trade.

To that end, one of the teams that is reportedly kicking the tires on a potential Fox trade is the Orlando Magic, a team that currently sits in fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings despite being one of the most injury-ravaged teams in the association. Both Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner are nursing oblique injuries of their own, while Jalen Suggs had to leave their 106-97 win over the Toronto Raptors early on a wheelchair due to a back injury.

The Magic could expedite their contending timeline by acquiring Fox, a legitimate 25+ points per game scorer who has a track record for being one of the deadliest with the game on the line. And it might be difficult for the Kings to find a better trade partner, especially when Orlando has a few enticing assets that could get a trade done.

Magic go all-in on blockbuster trade for De'Aaron Fox

Magic trade: Cole Anthony, Anthony Black, Tristan Da Silva, Cory Joseph, 2025 DEN first-round pick (protected 1-5 from 2025 to 2027), 2026 ORL first-round pick (unprotected), 2028 ORL first-round pick (unprotected)

Kings trade: De'Aaron Fox

Kings guard De'Aaron Fox (5) reacts after scoring a basket during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at Golden 1 Center
Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Is De'Aaron Fox the piece that will take this Magic team over the top? Orlando will have to answer that question first before making any moves that will change the fabric of how the team is built. At present, the Magic have not only managed to survive, but also thrive despite the absence of their two best players, by rallying as a team and playing hard-nosed defense from minute one to minute 48.

Their depth has kept them afloat, and something has to be said about building a contending team patiently, letting it bloom without doing something that could potentially derail what has been brewing. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner have certainly showed that they can lead the team from here on out, and the arrival of Fox might only serve to upset the hierarchy of this burgeoning young squad.

Moreover, the Magic have Jalen Suggs anyway, a man who has stepped up as the team's floor general this season. Sure, Suggs and Fox can co-exist on the same backcourt. But Suggs has been expanding his game quite nicely, and again, there will be plenty of questions as to whether or not Fox will fit in seamlessly with a group that has been growing together, or end up feeling out of place and disrupting the team's overall harmony.

But one cannot argue just how much of a talent boost Fox will provide a Magic team that often struggles to score the basketball. They have an offensive rating of 108.9, which ranks 26th in the association. That simply isn't good enough to contend for a championship. Their elite defense can only take them so far. Fox improves the team's ceiling on both ends of the floor.

Fox has averaged 25 points or more in four of the past five seasons, and it will be a boon for the Magic to have that kind of production on a nightly basis. He puts pressure on the rim thanks to his excellent speed, and he will fit in well with the team's youth, considering that he's one of the fastest players in the association.

Giving up Anthony Black and Tristan Da Silva won't be easy for the Magic, but for a player like Fox, it's a no-brainer. Cole Anthony hasn't been featuring in the rotation anyway with everyone healthy. The draft capital that will be given up is where this trade is going to be tricky.

The Kings will be asking for the world in exchange for their star player. But Black and Da Silva, the Magic's first-round picks in 2023 and 2024, respectively, being involved means that the Magic can afford not to give up too many picks, instead trading away the Denver Nuggets' 2025 first-rounder (acquired in the Aaron Gordon trade), and two firsts in 2026 and 2028 to sweeten the Kings' haul.