Scott Perry has spent his first stretch in Sacramento making moves that clean up the books, but they’ve also thinned out the Kings in a hurry.
The latest example came last Sunday, when Perry sent Nique Clifford to the Oklahoma City Thunder for two second-round picks. The deal pushed Sacramento farther away from the luxury tax and gave the front office a little more draft capital back, but it also meant moving on from a young player who had barely gotten a chance to settle in.
Clifford’s role had already shrunk under coach Doug Christie. In his second season, he slid out of the rotation and ended up playing fewer minutes than rookie Emanuel Sharp and third-year guard Daeqwon Plowden. That made the trade feel less like a surprise and more like the end of a quick evaluation.
It also brought the Kings’ asset shuffle into focus. Perry had previously traded a 2027 protected first-round pick from the San Antonio Spurs to the Thunder in order to get the No. 24 pick, which Sacramento used on Clifford. In the end, the Kings essentially turned that Spurs first into two second-rounders.
That wasn’t the only draft pick Perry has moved around. He used the 2029 conditional second-rounder from the Detroit Pistons in a Dennis Schöder sign-and-trade last offseason, then packaged Schröder and Keon Ellis to the Cleveland Cavaliers in February as part of the three-team deal for De’Andre Hunter. Sacramento signed Schröder to a three-year, $45 million deal before moving him.
Perry also burned through the team’s remaining second-rounders to keep reshaping the roster. He sent a 2031 second to move up and draft Alex Karaban with the No. 29 pick, then attached a 2032 second to dump Devin Carter to the Atlanta Hawks and get below the luxury tax.
That’s the tradeoff in Sacramento right now: the Kings are comfortably under the tax, but they’ve paid for it by giving up young talent and future flexibility.
Carter and Clifford both flashed late last season, especially when Zach LaVine underwent season-ending surgery in February and Russell Westbrook missed games. Clifford’s best moments stood out.
He scored a career-high 30 points on 12-for-19 shooting against the Cavaliers on Feb. 7, then followed that with a career-high six steals against the Memphis Grizzlies on Feb. 23.
Carter, the No. 13 pick in 2024, also showed signs of becoming more than just a developmental piece. Injuries limited him, but he still played 74 games in two seasons and averaged more than 11 points for three straight months, including nights when he led the team in scoring.
Perry has managed to get Sacramento well under the luxury tax. The question is what the Kings have given up to get there.
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