While most of the headlines have understandably swirled around the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, and other more marquee teams, one of the most fascinating teams in the NBA landscape today is the Sacramento Kings, led by point guard De'Aaron Fox. Fox enjoyed another strong season in 2023-24 but the Kings overall took a step back after their first playoff appearance in over a decade, instead floundering in the Play-In round this year vs the New Orleans Pelicans.

This of course raises the question of whether or not the Kings would push all of their chips in on the trade or free agency market this offseason in an attempt to keep pace with an expanding Western Conference playoff picture, and the answer thus far to that question has been a resounding “no.” Still, that doesn't mean that the Kings haven't tried to swing a deal for a big name since their season ended.

“The Kings, to my knowledge, earlier this week were close to a deal (for Lauri Markkanen),” reported Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports during a recent No Cap Room podcast episode (via Bleacher Report). “I do think that, based off of conversations I've had. I can't say more than that, but there were calls made to people around the NBA that would have indicated that talks have been legitimate there.”

Markkanen is one of the bigger names still left on the trade market at this point, as the Utah Jazz big man boasts a unique combination of size and shooting prowess, and has developed his game exponentially since being traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2022 offseason.

What should the Kings do?

Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (center) sits on the bench before the game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center.
Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

In theory, the addition of Markkanen would seem to make a lot of sense for a Kings team that is looking to keep pace as many other teams around them in the Western Conference have already made moves to get better this offseason.

While Fox and Domantas Sabonis are an elite pick and roll duo and are certainly capable of winning games by themselves, overall, the Kings don't have quite enough firepower to truly keep up with the game's elite, and Markkanen's near 40-percent three point shooting, along with his ability to create his own shot off of the dribble, would certainly open up a lot of space for a Kings offense that has gotten a tad predictable following their surprise playoff appearance in 2023.

The big question in any trade is what exactly the Kings would have to give up in order to acquire someone like Markkanen, especially considering that they aren't the only team interested in acquiring his services. Names like Kevin Huerter and Keegan Murray would figure to be somewhat valuable trade chips for Sacramento if they were to swing a deal for a big name.

In any case, it's undeniably been a disappointingly quiet offseason thus far for a Kings team that is at risk of falling out of the playoff picture completely considering the additions that some teams have made this summer.