The Sacramento Kings haven’t made a major splash this offseason, but the bigger move could be waiting a year down the line. If the financial picture stays anywhere close to what it looks like now, Sacramento may have real room to chase two names that are already on its radar: Jalen Duren and Jonathan Kuminga.
The Kings’ books are set up to open up. Zach LaVine’s $49 million player option for 2026-27 means this should be the last season Sacramento has to manage that contract.
De'Andre Hunter’s $24 million deal is expiring, Malik Monk has a $21.5 million player option for 2027-28, and Domantas Sabonis’s $48.6 million contract is expected to be used in a trade. Put all of that together, and the 2027 offseason starts to look like a real opportunity for the Kings to spend.
That’s where Duren comes in. He is still working through restricted free agency with the Detroit Pistons, but the interest from Sacramento is said to be mutual.
Before training camp, there should be a clearer picture of where the Kings stand in that chase. For now, there’s growing talk that Duren could take the qualifying offer, which would set him up to reach unrestricted free agency next summer.
The idea, naturally, would be to give Sacramento a chance to come in with a max contract.
Kuminga is in a similar lane. He signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves on a two-year, $12.4 million deal that includes a second-year player option, and that gives him a path to unrestricted free agency in 2027 if he believes a bigger payday is waiting in Sacramento.
NBA insider Jake Fischer laid out that possibility during a recent Bleacher Report livestream.
"Jalen Duren is emboldened to some degree to potentially take that qualifying offer because he knows that the Sacramento Kings have a lot of interest in potentially giving him a maximum salary contract next summer, if he were to reach unrestricted free agency," Fischer reported. "The tricky thing there is that Sacramento is also a team that Jonathan Kuminga believes will be waiting to give him a significant payday if he were to reach unrestricted free agency next season."
The numbers suggest Sacramento could be positioned to make noise. Right now, the Kings are projected to carry about $126 million in cap hits for the 2027-28 season, with Sabonis’s and Monk’s contracts on the books and obvious team options for Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud included. That could leave the Kings roughly $60 million under the salary cap and $80 million below the tax line heading into free agency.
Nothing is guaranteed, of course, and plenty can change before then. But there is a path for Sacramento to land both players next summer.
If that happens, a young trio of Darius Acuff Jr. (20), Duren (23), and Kuminga (24) would give the Kings a very different look.
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Emanuel Sharp got similar respect on the other end of the floor, where his peers picked him as the best defender in the group. His work at Houston already suggested that kind of value, and the Kings are projecting him as a 3-and-D guard who can bring balance to a young backcourt. For a team trying to sort out minutes and roles, having two rookies arrive with that kind of reputation is a promising place to start. [Read more 🡒]
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On the other side, the Raptors have a crowded enough wing picture that a deal like this at least fits the kind of decision-making teams make when they need to sort out roles and fit. Sacramentos side would not be painless, since Malik Monk remains a useful piece and the inclusion of Nique Clifford and Daeqwon Plowden underscores that this would be more than a simple one-for-one swap. For now, though, there is no official trade, which leaves the question of whether the Kings are truly preparing for a real shakeup or just keeping tabs on another possible pivot. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Suddenly Have A Wing Decision That Could Shape The Rotation
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That mix gives the coaching staff options, but it also creates a real decision about how the rotation should be shaped and who deserves the most consistent minutes. Cliffords development could push the picture in one direction, Simmons changes it in another, and Karaban adds a young variable that makes the competition more than just a placeholder battle. For a team looking to maximize lineup flexibility, the wing rotation may end up being one of the quieter but most important roster calls of the summer. [Read more 🡒]