The Sacramento Kings have been off to a disappointing start to the 2025-26 season, and that start has reportedly been accompanied by trade calls from teams around the league. But there is one player in particular whom the Kings have seen draw a lot of trade interest as the rumor mill continues to churn.
As trade winds continue to blow, the one Kings player who has seen his name thrown into rumors is Keon Ellis, as per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line. Ellis’ playing time has fallen off with Doug Christie in his first full season as head coach, and he’s been drawing interest from plenty of teams around the NBA interested in his ability on both ends of the court.
“‘More than half the league has called on him,’ one source with knowledge of the situation told The Stein Line. . .At just 25, Ellis is regarded by many teams as a natural plug-and-play addition with two-way ability,” Fischer reports. “He’s also eligible for a contract extension come springtime. I imagine that we’re going to be talking a lot about Ellis between now and the Feb. 5 trade buzzer.”
Fischer suggests that Ellis’ situation could play out in a multitude of ways; possibly remaining with the Kings as part of the their future, fetching a first round pick in a trade, or being included as a sweetener if the Kings end up offloading one, or both, of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan.
Ellis worked his way onto the Kings roster via a two-way contract ahead of the 2022-23 season after he went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft. His contract as ultimately converted to standard deal, and he’s usually played well when given the opportunity.
This season, Ellis has appeared in 16 games, including two starts, at a little over 18 minutes per game. He’s been averaging 6.6 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals with splits of 44 percent shooting from the field, 42.4 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 70 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
