The Sacramento Kings still have the kind of offseason that demands more headlines, but they’ve already done more than some around the league seem willing to give them credit for.
Yes, the big picture remains centered on the same two names: Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis. Both are still tied to the franchise, and both continue to represent the biggest obstacles to a full reset.
Their contracts are heavy, their fit no longer works, and that has made life frustrating for Kings fans who want the rebuild to move faster. Even so, the front office hasn’t been idle.
LaVine’s situation sounds likely to drag out, with Sacramento expected to ride out the contract and let him reach free agency in 2027. Sabonis is still a trade candidate, but the Kings do not appear interested in taking a bad return just to get him off the books. That patience has left the roster in transition, but it has also allowed the team to keep building around the edges.
The 2026 NBA Draft gave Sacramento a real boost. Perry added Darius Acuff Jr., Alex Karaban, and Emanuel Sharp, and Acuff stands out as the prize of the group.
He has the upside to become an All-Star-caliber point guard for the Kings. Karaban and Sharp were also identified as players who could matter down the line, giving the rebuild some legitimate long-term pieces.
Sacramento also made sure to keep Precious Achiuwa after what was described as a strong 2025-2026 season, with some even labeling it a breakout year. Russell Westbrook, meanwhile, did not return after choosing retirement following 18 seasons. He was last seen balling on a yacht with CP3.
The Kings also brought back Daeqwon Plowden, added Jonathan Mogbo and Adam Flagler on two-way contracts, and re-signed Ben Simmons, a move that still comes with plenty of uncertainty attached. On the flip side, the team moved on from several players, including DeMar DeRozan and Devin Carter.
There is still room to keep tinkering. Sacramento has one main roster spot and one two-way contract left to use, so more additions are coming. The two biggest moves the franchise needs have not happened yet, but the Kings have kept the rebuild moving and put some real structure in place for what comes next.
In Other News...
Kings Have A Murray Reunion Chance Fans Should Be Watching
Keegan Murray has become one of the Kings most important pieces, so it is hard not to notice the possibility of a family reunion taking shape down the road. His brother Kris Murray is with the Memphis Grizzlies now, but there is already some chatter that his future there could become uncertain before the 2026-27 season, and Sacramento has something plenty of teams do not: roster flexibility and cap room to keep a move like that on the table.
For Kings fans, the appeal goes beyond the novelty of two Murrays in the same locker room. Bringing Kris to Sacramento would give the franchise another young, familiar name to work with as it keeps reshaping the roster, and it would reunite the brothers on an NBA team for the first time since college. It is still only a possibility, not a certainty, but it is the kind of idea that fits both the basketball and the human side of a rebuilding team. [Read more 🡒]
Devin Carters Next Chance May Depend On One Concern Miami Cant Ignore
Devin Carters path back to an NBA roster has become a familiar kind of front-office puzzle: a young guard with real pedigree, a first-round resume from 2024 and a name that still carries some weight in South Florida because of his father, former Heat guard Anthony Carter. After being waived by Atlanta, he is suddenly available again, and Miami has the kind of roster space and cap flexibility that makes this the sort of move it can at least consider without much financial gymnastics.
The appeal is easy to see. Carter has shown scoring touch and defensive energy, two traits that tend to travel well in Miamis system. The hesitation is just as easy to understand, though, because his injuries and uneven playing time have kept his development from settling into a clear rhythm. Heat insider Ira Winderman has pointed out that Miami fits Carters profile, but the more immediate question is whether the team wants to wait and see what else shakes loose on the buyout market instead. [Read more 🡒]
Kings May Finally Have A Path Out Of This Brutal Playoff Drought
The Kings finally have a little room to think bigger again, and that alone is notable after so many lean years. Sacramento snapped its 16-year playoff drought in the 2022-23 season, but the relief was tempered quickly by another first-round exit, leaving the franchise still searching for the kind of breakthrough it last had in 2004, when its run ended in a seven-game Western Conference Finals loss to the Lakers.
Now general manager Scott Perry is trying to shape a roster that can do more than just get back to the postseason. He has already added guard Darius Acuff Jr. in the draft and is positioning the club for the next offseason with financial flexibility, a setup that could put Sacramento in the mix for free-agent help. Among the names on the Kings radar is Pistons center Jalen Duren, a target who would signal a more aggressive push to finally turn progress into something lasting. [Read more 🡒]