Amnesty Watch: Why Sacramento Kings Must Rid Themselves of John Salmons

John Salmons will be useless by the time the Sacramento Kings become contenders.

Sac-Town is an up-and-coming ballclub. They aren’t capable of winning now—not even close. Because of that, they shouldn’t hesitate use their amnesty clause on Salmons this offseason.

Salmons is a 32-year-old shooting guard. The next-oldest player in the Kings’ starting lineup this year was Jason Thompson at the ripe age of 25. Salmons just doesn’t fit in.

Now, if he brought an invaluable veteran presence to the floor, Sacramento would be motivated to keep him in town. But more than anything, his minutes zap promising combo-guard Jimmer Fredette's of playing time. If the Kings successfully develop Fredette, they’ll boast one of the most talented guard trios in the NBA for years to come with Jimmer, Isaiah Thomas and Marcus Thornton.

On top of being old and a hindrance to Fredette’s progression, Salmons’ salary is the highest on the squad. According to HOOPSWORLD, he’s set to make $8 million next season and $7.6 million the following year. Freeing themselves of Salmons’ contract would allow the Kings to orchestrate major moves in free agency.

In fact, they’d possess enough cap room to offer the free agent of their choice a max contract. While they’d love to bring in a top-notch low-post presence to pair with DeMarcus Cousins, there won’t be any quality big men that hit the open market as unrestricted free agents on the right side of 35 years old, a la Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan.

In the summer of 2013, though, Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum, Al Jefferson and Josh Smith will all be up for grabs.

If the Kings manage to land a player out of that talented quartet, they’ll be well on their way to returning to playoff contention. Sacramento already boasts one of the highest-scoring offenses in the league. They aren’t necessarily lacking in skill, but maturity and dedication to the defensive end of the floor—two things that will improve with time.

But Sacramento still must play their cards right in the coming months.

Putting together another successful draft class is their first challenge. Considering that the 2012 NBA draft is being labeled the most talented since 2003, that shouldn’t be too difficult.

The next step is to push the right buttons in free agency. That involves letting Salmons go. If the Kings amnesty him, they’ll have an ace in the hole when it comes time for them to sign a big name in a year from now.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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