The Sacramento Kings have spent years trying to build around a payroll that leaves almost no breathing room. That could finally change in the 2027 offseason, when the team may suddenly be looking at more than $95 million in salary cap space if several key contracts come off the books.
For now, Sacramento is still operating right near the first apron. That reality has forced the Kings to squeeze value wherever they can, and they’ve handled the rebuild reasonably well by hitting on the draft and bringing in solid veterans to support the younger players. Even so, there’s only so far a team can go when the money is tight and some of the biggest contracts are difficult to move.
The Kings already made one move to keep things manageable for next season, waiving DeMar DeRozan and stretching the rest of his salary across the next three years. That helped them avoid the first apron luxury tax this coming season and should leave enough flexibility to sign a pair of veterans to minimum deals for 2026-2027. One of those spots will need to go to a point guard who can back up Darius Acuff Jr. and serve as a mentor for the rookie.
The real shift comes the following summer. Zach LaVine’s contract is up.
De’Andre Hunter’s contract is up. Malik Monk has a player option.
If Monk leaves and Sacramento lets LaVine and Hunter walk, the Kings would be looking at nearly $95 million in potential room before accounting for other increases and renegotiations.
Once those adjustments are factored in, that number drops to about $67 million. If Monk stays on his player option, the space falls further to $46 million. Even that would be a major change for a franchise that has had no real cap room for years.
And that’s why the 2027 free agency cycle matters. Depending on how player options, team options, and extension talks shake out, there could be a strong group of available names next summer. For the first time in a long while, the Kings may actually have the money to enter that conversation.
In Other News...
Kings Fans Just Got Another Brutal Reminder Of Their Team's Climb
The Kings rebuild has already asked for patience, but the last two decades have made that a tough sell to a weary fan base. Since Rick Adelmans departure, Sacramento has managed only one playoff appearance, a stretch defined by postseason droughts, front-office turnover and constant searching for the right direction, even as managing owner Vivek Ranadive has stayed in place for 13 years and GM Scott Perry has tried to push the roster toward something sturdier.
Still, the latest outside view was a harsh one. Bleacher Report projects Sacramento to sit last in its power rankings over the next three seasons, a reminder that progress in this market is still being measured against a long climb. The organization continues to treat this as a long-term build, and Perrys recent draft and roster work has drawn some optimism, but the broader picture remains clear: the Kings are still trying to prove they can turn incremental movement into real staying power. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Season Comes Down To One Pressure Point In This Rebuild
The Kings head into the 2026-27 season with the kind of roster clarity that usually only comes after a team has already made its choices. Darius Acuff Jr., Zach LaVine, De'Andre Hunter, Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis are expected to form the starting group, and with the roster mostly settled, the focus in Sacramento has shifted from adding pieces to seeing what this group can become. In a rebuild, that changes the definition of success fast. Wins still matter, but so does whether the young players in the room actually move the franchise forward.
Keegan Murray sits at the center of that evaluation. His new contract starts this season, which gives the Kings both a financial commitment and a clear measuring stick for how far this rebuild can go. Projections around the team range from roughly 20 wins to 40, a reminder that the floor and ceiling are still wide apart. For Sacramento, the real pressure point is not just where the record lands, but whether the young core develops enough to make the next step feel real. [Read more 🡒]
Malik Monks Kings Role Feels Like A Rebuild Clue
Malik Monk is still in Sacramento, and that alone says something about where the Kings are headed. After trade buzz followed him through the 2025 offseason and then again at the 2026 deadline, he has stayed put, with two years left on his deal and a player option on the final season. For a Kings team that has not made any notable recent moves around him, Monks presence feels less like business as usual and more like a decision to keep one of its more movable pieces close for now.
The question is what comes next, because retaining Monk does not necessarily mean the front office is done weighing its options. Sacramento may be looking at this season as a chance to let him boost his trade value before the 2027 deadline, especially if the market shifts again. No official plan has been announced, but the longer he remains in place, the more he looks like part of a rebuild calculation rather than just a stable rotation choice. [Read more 🡒]