What Next for the Sacramento Kings?

1. Keep Artest and he opts out.  If Artest opts out of his contract at the end of the year, he frees over $8 million in cap space.  Based on the Bibby deal, it's cap space that Petrie's after at this point.
2. Keep Artest and he opts in.  If he takes the one-year player option, you have a top-tier 27-year old player on an $8 million expiring contract next season. Not to mention 20 points and 38 minutes of lock-down defense each night at the SF position and back-stage passes to the TruWarier concerts. 
3. Deal Artest alone. If you deal Artest by himself, the best you can hope for is an expiring deal and a first-rounder. But anyone willing to risk that trade (Denver or San Antonio) is going to give you a draft pick in the mid- to late-20s.  Those types of picks rarely have an impact and cost you $2 million a year for at least two years.
4. Deal Artest and bad contracts. A fourth option includes ridding the Kings of Kenny Thomas awful contract. However, this likely means taking on a player another team doesn't want.  Plus, it's unlikely the Kings get expiring (or even reasonable) contracts to cover the $15 million these two "earn".

I would prefer option 2 (without the passes), then 4, 1 and 3 in that order.  In other words, shipping Ron Ron without a side of garbage contract is not a good idea on the court or the bottom line.

The King's second movable player, whom they would be willing to part with, is Brad Miller.  He of the new found penchant for rebounding (11 per game in 2008).

1. The Miami Heat don't have a legitimate center left on their roster.  Would they be interested in a Jason Williams and Daequan Cook for Brad Miller deal?
2. How about the Raptors, they need some rebounding and interior passing help for Chris Bosh.  A deal for Rasho Nesterovich and Darrick Martin's expiring deals plus Jamario Moon works out.  Of course if the Raps want to part with Jose Calderon, I'm all for that too!
3. Finally, if the Spurs are considering Ron Artest, can't Petrie coerce them into a deal that looks much better to their fan base? For example, wouldn't a deal for Brent Barry and Fracisco Elson's expiring deals, plus their first rounder for Miller be a perfect reaction to the Lakers and Suns deals? Wouldn't Popovich love to have an unbalanced trade of his own in the wake of his Gasol outburst?

Ok.  Now I've said it to the masses.  The Kings as I know (or sort of know given the current roster) and love need to pick a side of the fence.  Rebuilding right now seems better than playing playoff roulette with the Suns, Spurs, Jazz, Mavs, Lakers, Hornets, Nuggets, Warriors and Rockets... wait, you mean one of those teams isn't making the playoffs?

Yeah, like I said. Time to move to the sidelines and rebuild full bore.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?