Report: Kings trade Stauskas, others to 76ers in cap-clearing move
Sacramento is finalizing a trade with Philadelphia that will send Nik Stauskas, Jason Thompson and Carl Landry to the 76ers in an effort to clear salary cap space, according to Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski. Philadelphia will also receive a top-10-protected–first-round draft pick from the Kings and swap first-round picks with Sacramento in two unspecified drafts, according to Grantland's Zach Lowe. In exchange, the 76ers are reportedly giving up a future second-round pick and the rights to an overseas player, according to Wojnarowski.
The Kings already had between $8.5 and $10 million in salary cap space available as of Wednesday night, before any deal was completed, according to Lowe. That figure is estimated to have been enough on its own to sign Mavericks guard Rajon Rondo, who is believed to be one of the Kings' primary free agent targets. But Wednesday's trade to clear additional cap space could signal that Sacramento is looking to add more than just Rondo to its roster.
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SI.com's Chris Mannix reported that the cap clearance efforts were related to the Kings' pursuit of Rondo and his Mavericks teammate, free-agent guard Monta Ellis. Jeremy Lin is also a target for the Kings, Mannix reported.
SBNation NBA writer Tom Ziller reported that if the Kings aren't on the hook for any guaranteed contract money as part of Wednesday's trade, then the team will have cleared $25.9 million in space for the 2015–16 season alone.
Landry, Thompson and Stauskas, who was the No. 8 pick in the 2014 draft, were role players on the Kings' 29–53 team last season, averaging 7.2, 6.1 and 4.4 points per game, respectively.
