Kings shed salary, move Davion Mitchell and Sasha Vezenkov to Raptors

Welcome to The Kings Beat! With the season over, we’ll be diving into what comes next for the Sacramento Kings and it’s a great time to jump on board with a premium subscription so you get all the latest delivered directly to your inbox. Also, for more Kings content, join Kyle Madson and myself Monday-Friday from 10-noon for The Insiders on ESPN 1320!

We have a trade.

According to multiple reports, the Sacramento Kings have traded Davion Mitchell, Sasha Vezenkov, the No. 45 pick in the 2024 NBA draft and a 2025 second round selection (via Portland) to the Toronto Raptors for veteran forward Jalen McDaniels.

The 26-year-old McDaniels played sparingly last season after signing a two-year, $9.3 million deal with the Raptors. He has one year and $4.7 million remaining on that contract.

In 50 appearances for the Raptors, McDaniels posted 3.4 points and 1.6 rebounds in 10.8 minutes per game. At 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot wingspan, McDaniels has the length and athleticism the Kings are searching for, although he’ll need to show something in training camp to earn a spot in the rotation.

Mitchell, who the Kings selected ninth overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, never quite found his footing in Sacramento. He averaged 7.4 points and 2.8 assists over 227 games, including 32 starts, during his three seasons with the Kings.

The defensive-minded point guard became a bit redundant in Sacramento after the team selected Devin Carter with the No. 13 overall selection on Wednesday. Mitchell will get a shot to reboot his NBA career with a Toronto franchise that could use depth in the backcourt.

After a whirlwind courtship of Vezenkoz last summer, the 28-year-old forward struggled to find playing time with the Kings as a rookie. A pair of ankle sprains further limited his opportunity, but he was also lost in the shuffle of a crowded front court. In his lone season in Sacramento, the Bulgarian-born forward averaged 5.4 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.2 minutes over 42 games.

Mitchell was entering his final season of his rookie contract with the Kings and is owed roughly $6.5 million this season. Vezenkov was on the books for just under $6.7 million this season with a team option for the 2025-26 season as well.

The tandem of Mitchell and Vezenkov were set to make a total of $13.1 million this season. This trade not only opens an extra roster spot for the Kings, but it saves them close to $8.4 million in salary while creating at least one trade exception and potentially two.

With the impending signing of Malik Monk and his opening year salary of $17.4 million, in conjunction with the drafting of Carter and his $4.7 million cap hold, the Kings were set to exceed the NBA’s $171.3 million luxury tax this season.

This trade drops the team to roughly $164 million dedicated salary for the season. That puts Sacramento $7.3 million below the luxury tax and around $14.7 million below the first apron. By my reading of the NBA’s complicated CBA, this opens the team to use their mid-level exception worth up to $12.9 million this season without being hard capped.

This is a savvy move by general manager Monte McNair. The Kings have plenty of needs this offseason. They accomplished one rotational addition through the draft, added some length and athleticism with McDaniels’ arrival and cleared out two players who no longer fit the long term plan.

There is still a lot of work to do, but this was a strong first step in the team’s summer build.