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Welcome in to your morning cup of Kings. The Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline is quickly approaching and the Sacramento Kings not only pulled off one trade, but there are plenty of additional rumors to dive into.
First up, the Domantas Sabonis rumors to the Toronto Raptors continue to be a thing. The potential for a Sabonis trade was brought up again today by Jake Fischer on Marc Stein’s substack.
“Sources say Toronto remains the team most sources with knowledge of the situation see as a viable suitor for the All-Star big man,” Fischer writes. “Jakob Poeltl's prolonged injury absence from a back issue, while the Raptors continue to battle for homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs, has created an even larger need for a frontcourt boost.”
According to league sources, the Kings have discussed a potential 3-for-1 swap and potentially a 4-for-1 swap with the Raptors that would send Sabonis to Toronto.
Sacramento has no interest in taking on the remaining four years of Jakob Poeltl’s contract according to a source, especially with his recent bout of back issues. A league source also has the Kings passing on Immanuel Quickley’s contract that pays him $32.5 million this season and that same figure for the next three years as well.
There is still a pathway for the Kings and Raptors to find common ground, including the former No. 3 overall pick RJ Barrett, who Kings general manager Scott Perry drafted back in 2019 while running the New York Knicks.
Barrett, 25, is a quality scorer who is under contract at $27.7 million this season and another $29.6 million next year. In addition to Barrett, the Raptors would have to include two or three players from a list that includes former Kansas stars Gradey Dick and Ochai Agbaji, as well as Collin Murray-Boyles.
Murray-Boyles was the ninth pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and while he fits Perry’s style of player, he’s also someone the Raptors will likely fight to hold onto.
The Raptors also have all of their future first round picks and additional second round draft capital as well. Rumors over the weekend had Toronto searching for a third team to potentially take on a contract to help facilitate a trade.
The Dylan Cardwell situation
In addition to the latest rumors, I also dive into the Dylan Cardwell contract situation in the latest edition of Locked On Kings. According to a team source, the 24-year-old rookie is in line to receive a regular contract with the team after signing a two-year, two-way contract with the club after going undrafted this summer.
Cardwell has worked his way into a rotational spot with the Kings and when the team opened up two roster spots in the trade that brought De’Andre Hunter to Sacramento, the logical next step is to upgrade Cardwell.
The defensive-minded center will have to wait until after the dust settles on Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, but it appears that one way or another, the franchise is ready to reward him with a multi-year deal that will keep him in a Kings uniform for the foreseeable future.
The Kings Beat Podcast
In case you missed it, Sean Cunningham, Brenden Nunes and I hosted a new edition of The Kings Beat Podcast on Sunday evening.
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