Ideal Potential Free Agent for Sacramento Kings at Every Position
The Sacramento Kings have never been much of a free-agent destination, but maybe they can change that this offseason.
Unlike in recent years, the Kings actually figure to have some flexibility. The team only has eight players on guaranteed contracts, totaling $52.3 million. According to Draft Express’ Jonathan Givony, the 2015-16 salary cap is slated for $67.1 million, with the luxury tax projected for $81.6 million.
That means the Kings have seven roster spots and $15 million to work with (maybe more, depending on whether ownership is willing to spend up to the luxury tax, which it has been since Vivek Ranadive took over). Of course, the Kings also have to sign their lottery pick, which will cut into how much they can spend elsewhere.
With so much flexibility, the Kings can afford to look at upgrading every position. After all, when you miss the playoffs for nine straight years, nothing should be above scrutiny…even if it means adding depth to a spot with an established starter.
Point Guard: Andre Miller
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Andre Miller was on the Kings last year, but he’s also an unrestricted free agent. As such, Sacramento should make every effort to retain the veteran.
Miller would be the perfect backup point guard for the Kings.
Even at 39 years old, Miller is still a productive player. He averaged 5.7 points and 4.7 assists in 20.7 minutes after coming over from the Washington Wizards in a midseason trade.
Plus, head coach George Karl is looking to fill the roster with players who understand his system. There could be no better option than Miller, who has spent part of six seasons with the coach, including the second half of 2014-15.
As Karl told reporters following Miller’s arrival in Sacramento:
"He’s kind of my security blanket with this team because I know him and he knows me. And when we get in that zone of what the hell’s going on out there, he’s the guy I go to as much as anybody.
Andre’s the type of guy, I just give him the second unit, and say I’m gonna put Jason (Thompson) out there with you, I think (Thompson is) gonna run for you and (Miller) figures it out. He’s (almost) 39 years old, but he’s a winner and I think when he’s 41 he’ll still be a winner. He knows how to win games, he knows how to lead a team, and it’s a pleasure to have him with me.
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For his part, Miller told Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports he'd be interested in re-signing with the Kings.
That makes this a no-brainer.
Projected Contract: Veteran Minimum (one year, $1.49 million)
Shooting Guard: Lou Williams
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Lou Williams could be the perfect solution for the Kings at shooting guard.
As the reigning Sixth Man of the Year winner, we know Williams is an effective player. He averaged a career-high 15.5 points for the Toronto Raptors. The guard also dished out 2.1 assists and grabbed 1.9 boards in 25.2 minutes per game.
That Williams is obviously comfortable coming off the bench is another plus for the Kings, who have Ben McLemore and Nik Stauskas already on the roster at 2-guard. Whether Williams would supplant McLemore in the starting lineup remains to be seen.
Williams also plays a style that meshes well with McLemore, whose game is more geared toward shooting. While Williams still has a decent outside shot, hitting 34.1 percent of his career three-pointers, he’s best creating opportunities for himself off the dribble.
That means the Kings could use two serviceable shooting guards in each game without overlapping skill sets. Not only would it provide flexibility, but Williams’ presence would relieve some of the pressure off McLemore to develop on the fly.
Plus, Williams is a combo guard. That means he could be the primary backup at either shooting guard or point guard.
Projected Contract: Four years, $24 million
Small Forward: Mike Dunleavy
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If Mike Dunleavy has proved anything over his 13 seasons, it's that he's a reliable shooter.
For his career, Dunleavy has knocked down 37.6 percent of his 3,227 three-point attempts. That number gets even better in recent years, with the forward making 40.3 percent since the start of the 2010-11 season.
The Kings, meanwhile, only made 34.1 percent of their three-pointers in 2014-15, worse than all but nine teams.
Dunleavy would fit in well with the Kings because he's able to produce without commanding the ball. He was used in only 14.2 percent of Chicago's possessions last season yet managed to chip in 9.7 points per game. With Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins demanding the ball, Dunleavy could remain effective without taking away for the team's two best players.
The catch will be getting Dunleavy to sign. At this stage of his career, he may want to play for an established contender. Plus, the Kings may have to shed some salary to get him, which they could do by swapping either power forward Carl Landry or Jason Thompson
Projected contract: Two years, $10 million
Power Forward: Jonas Jerebko
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Jonas Jerebko would be a good fit for the Kings as a stretch 4.
The 28-year-old has knocked down 34.4 percent of his career three-pointers, including 39.7 over the past two seasons.
Not only does Jerebko shoot from outside effectively, but he also does so frequently. Last season, 51.9 percent of his field-goal attempts were from at least 16 feet from the hoop.
That works perfectly, considering the Kings have a center in DeMarcus Cousins who does most of his work in the paint. Last season, 75.4 percent of Cousins’ shots came from within 16 feet of the hoop.
With Jerebko’s effectiveness shooting the long ball, defenders have to stay honest when he’s on the perimeter. That, in turn, gives Cousins plenty of room to work. It’ll be a situation where the opposition has to decide whether to double-team Cousins in the post or stay with Jerebko and allow DMC to go one-on-one.
Projected contract: Three years, $12 million
Center: Bismack Biyombo
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Because of the aforementioned Cousins, the Kings aren’t looking for a center to come in and start. They need someone to complement what’s already there.
Over the past season, Cousins made enough strides on defense to where he can be relied on to defend the hoop. But other than DMC, there’s nobody else on the team who is a reliable rim protector.
That’s where Bismack Biyombo comes in.
The 22-year-old has averaged 2.7 blocks per 36 minutes during his career, including 2.9 in 2014-15. What does that mean for the Kings?
Well, put in a different context, Biyombo blocked 99 shots on the season, and that was after only playing in 64 games and averaging 19.4 minutes. As a team, the Kings swatted 324 shots…over 82 games that were each 48 minutes (and some were more when factoring in overtime).
It's safe to say Biyombo would help in that area.
Projected contract: Two years, $4 million
Unless noted otherwise, all stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
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