NBA Trade Rumors: Caleb Swanigan to Kings; Blazers Get Skal Labissiere
The Sacramento Kings reportedly traded power forward Skal Labissiere to the Portland Trail Blazers for power forward Caleb Swanigan prior to Thursday's deadline, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Labissiere was the No. 28 overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft, while Swanigan went 26th overall in the 2017 NBA draft.
The 22-year-old Labissiere fell out of Sacramento's rotation this season after showing promise in his first two seasons.
After playing one season at Kentucky, Labissiere averaged 8.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in 93 contests over his first two NBA campaigns. So far this season, Labissiere has appeared in just 13 games and is averaging 2.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in 8.7 minutes per game.
On the heels of a standout college career at Purdue, Swanigan was viewed as a potential steal late in the first round of the 2017 NBA draft. He averaged just 2.3 points and 2.0 rebounds per game as a rookie, however, and in 18 games this season, Swanigan is averaging 1.9 points and 2.9 rebounds.
Labissiere has one year remaining on his contract before becoming a restricted free agent, while Swanigan has club options in his contract over each of the next two seasons.
The trade is likely a good thing for both players, since it will provide them with the change of scenery they need.
The Trail Blazers are fourth in the Western Conference at 32-21, and Sacramento is ninth at 28-26, just 1.5 games out of a playoff spot. In Portland, Labissiere will have an opportunity to provide some power forward depth behind Al-Farouq Aminu and Meyers Leonard.
The road to playing time may be a bit more difficult in Sacramento for Swanigan, though, behind rookie No. 2 overall pick Marvin Bagley III, Nemanja Bjelica and Harry Giles.
Portland and Sacramento already made bigger deals in recent days, with the Blazers acquiring wing Rodney Hood from the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Kings picking up small forward Harrison Barnes from the Dallas Mavericks.
The Blazers and Kings will next meet in each team's final game of the regular season on April 10.
