Subscribe
Follow Us
The Sacramento Kings enter the 2025–26 NBA season off the back of a difficult offseason that has been dominated by their consistent pursuit of Jonathan Kuminga. The Kings finished 9th in the West last season with a 40-42 record, eventually crashing out in the play-in tournament.
They have proceeded to double down on the core of DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis. The Kings have also added veteran point guard Dennis Schroder, and are now looking to round off a relatively quiet offseason with the acquisition of Kuminga. And while that will give them another scoring outlet, questions about Schroder persist alongside a lack of defensive improvement.
This may eventually require a dip into the trade market, with two players emerging as obvious candidates for different reasons.
Keegan Murray
Despite Murray being one of the brightest young players the Kings have, he has emerged as a trade candidate because he is also one of the only remaining trade assets on their roster. At 24 years old and on a modest $11.1 million salary, Murray offers rare upside, strong defense, secondary scoring, and a team-friendly contract that the Kings can make use of in pursuit of a bigger star.
Murray started all 76 regular-season games for the Kings last season, averaging 12.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists, per Basketball Reference. The Kings may have made him an untouchable in the current offseason due to his potential.
However, their core find themselves in win-now mode and getting a player in a similar timeline may eventually prove tantalizing, especially considering the potential superstars that are likely to be available.
Malik Monk
Malik Monk is the most tradable high-value asset on the Kings' roster. Fresh off the career-best season of his life, Monk’s scoring versatility and playmaking make him a coveted piece for playoff-ready teams. He’s on a team-friendly contract, earning approximately $18.8 million this season and $20.2 million next, with a player option in 2027–28.
That, alongside the presence of LaVine and DeRozan, makes him one of the obvious candidates to be put on the trade block next. The Kings are in a delicate position and their next move may as well determine whether they emerge as serious playoff contenders, or fizzle out once again.
Monk was already the favorite to be included in the Schroder sign-and-trade, and is expected to be the first one to be traded by the Kings.
