Zach LaVine is staying put in Sacramento, at least for now.
The Kings have been waiting on his decision, and it’s now official: LaVine has picked up his nearly $49 million player option. That keeps him in a Sacramento uniform entering 2026-2027, but it doesn’t close the book on the situation. The trade chatter around him is still alive, and this offseason storyline is nowhere near finished.
LaVine has turned into a face of the rebuild in Sacramento, just not in the way the Kings want. He can score, and he’s a good shooter, but his defense has become the glaring issue in his game with the Kings. That mismatch is a problem for the direction Scott Perry is steering the rebuild and for the defense Doug Christie is trying to build.
His contract is part of the headache, too. LaVine’s salary has made it harder for Sacramento to chase bigger moves, which is why there was some hope he might pass on the option for 2026-2027.
But that was always more wishful thinking than likely outcome. Taking the option made the most financial sense.
On the open market, LaVine wasn’t going to find a team willing to pay him more than $20 million per season. So even with the Kings still looking to move him, this decision locks in a $49 million payday wherever he plays this season.
Sacramento has been trying to trade LaVine for more than a year, and the market hasn’t exactly exploded. Teams like the Bucks have shown only limited interest, and nobody has stepped up with a firm commitment. Any club that brings him in will be paying a premium, at least for one season.
The Kings would obviously prefer to move him before the next season begins. That would clear some room and give them more flexibility in free agency. But if a deal doesn’t come together soon, Sacramento may have to wait much longer.
One possibility is that the Kings hold onto LaVine until the 2027 Trade Deadline, when less money and less time left on the deal would make him easier to move. There’s also the chance he simply stays on the roster through 2026-2027 and reaches free agency the following offseason.
That’s not the outcome Sacramento wants. The plan remains to trade LaVine this offseason. Whether that happens quickly or drags on, the Kings still have a long way to go before this one is resolved.
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Now the more awkward part of the story is whether Sacramento has to circle back to the very player it chose to move on from. The front office still has a clear need for more defense and shooting on the perimeter, and Ellis has become a logical name to watch as the Kings weigh how to patch together a backcourt that never quite settled after the offseason changes. [Read more 🡒]