Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Idea Sends Domantas Sabonis to Nets, Hawks Add Sixth Man, Kings Get Claxton + Johnson

The Sacramento Kings are in a very strange position this offseason. They made the play-in tournament, but the Mavericks dominated them in a 120-106 blowout. As a result, All-NBA center Domantas Sabonis guarantee is not a guarentee to be in Sacramento long-term. NBA insider Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints had this to say about the situation:

“Many around the league are preparing for the possibility of the Kings becoming big sellers ahead of the 2026 NBA trade deadline next February, which would likely result in Sabonis requesting a trade should a clear direction not present itself.”

Even so, Siegel has made it very clear as of late that the Kings have no interest in shopping Sabonis themselves.

"The Kings have not been contacting teams gauging trade interest in Domantas Sabonis. Although Sabonis has heard his name come up in recent rumors, Sacramento has not shown any interest in parting ways with the 29-year-old star big man to this point."

If the right offer comes along, though, it would be hard for the Kings to say no. They are currently built around a core of Sabonis, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Keegan Murray, but is that even worthy of a play-in spot in a stacked Western Conference? It might be worth turning the All-Star big man into draft capital capable of ushering in the next era of Kings basketball.

Surprisingly, a Sabonis package might come from the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets were linked to Giannis Antetokounmpo earlier this summer and while all signs are pointing towards him remaining in Milwaukee, that doesn't mean their pursuit of a star is necessarily over. Sabonis is a hard player to build around in order to win a championship, but the Nets are merely looking to be respectable. They have tons of salary cap space, ample draft capital and it might be useful to have a player as talented as Sabonis on the roster in order to give them a positive environment for developing prospects.

However, because the Kings are only $21.2 million under the tax threshold, adding a third team could make some sense in order to take on contracts and help them clear more salary. The Hawks could be that third team. Atlanta has a ton of financial flexibility this summer, which they can use to address their needs at interior defense, front court depth, shooting, and maybe a backup lead guard/ball handler. NBA insider Marc Stein has already reported that Atlanta could also look to be facilitators this summer in the trade market due to their financial flexibility, depending on if the team brings back any of Caris LeVert, Clint Capela, or Larry Nance.

Given the needs of all three teams, what would a trade between them look like? Here is one possible framework for a deal.

It should be noted that this is just a speculative and fun exercise to see what kind of moves can be made, not what I think the Hawks or any other teams should do or will do. That is all.

Atlanta Hawks Receive: Malik Monk

Brooklyn Nets Receive: Domantas Sabonis, Jake LaRavia (S&T, 3YR, $30M)

Sacramento Kings Receive: Nic Claxton, Cam Johnson, Terance Mann, 2025 1st round pick (via LAL, from ATL, #22), 2025 1st round pick (via HOU, from BKN, #27)

Why the Hawks would do this deal: The need for a player like Monk may not be as easy to see as Atlanta's need to add more capable defenders, but he can still help the Hawks due to his shooting and experience as a ball-handler. He had a down shooting season last year (32.5% from deep on 6.6 attempts a night), but he posted career highs in PPG (17.2) and assists per game (5.6). Monk struggled to fit with DeRozan and LaVine, never really recovering from the departure of De'Aaron Fox midseason. In a better offense helmed by Trae Young, expect Monk to feast on the open shots that he gets and return to the highly effective sixth man he was with Sacramento during the previous season. The best thing about Monk's game is how well he functions in an off-ball role, which is important for anyone playing with Young. He's not a great defender, but he can be a capable help defender.

Why the Hawks would not do this deal: Playing Young and Monk together, which would have to happen at times in order to make this deal truly worth it, is a situation that could ultimately make the Hawks more exploitable on defense while reducing the amount of minutes Dyson Daniels is on the court. Daniels has turned himself into a vital part of Atlanta's starting lineup and anything that reduces his impact should be very carefully considered. Furthermore, the Hawks would be giving up a pick to make this happen and even a late first round pick holds value.

Why the Kings would do this deal: Cameron Johnson is a great shooting option with size who brings a little bit of creation ability and respectable defense. He had a career TS% of 63.2% last season and shot above 77th percentile on both corner and non-corner threes last season. This is while taking a career-high 7.2 attempts per season. He also shot 71% at the rim, which finished in the 83rd percentile league-wide and gives the Kings another wing who can get downhill and score alongside Keegan Murray. On defense, he's not as strong as he once was, but he can hold his own against most small forwards and occasionally guards. The Kings would be able to put a solid defense of Murray, Keon Ellis and Johnson out and improve upon a struggling perimeter defense last season. The real difference would be at center, where they are swapping out offensive impact for better rim protection. At his best, Claxton is an excellent shot-blocker with defensive versatility and hints of a more expanded scoring skillset. During the 2022-23 season, he led the league in FG% and finished 9th in DPOY voting because he averaged 3.0 blocks per game and routinely took on difficult defensive assignments. He also grabbed 11.1 rebounds a night and looked like one of the best young centers in basketball. Since then, he hasn't been as effective. However, it's possible that he could benefit from playing alongside two experienced ball handlers in DeRozan and LaVine. If he is able to return to form, the Kings' defense might even crack the top 10 after just one offseason.

Why the Kings would not do this deal: While the argument could be made that Sacramento makes a more balanced team through this move, they are still moving on from an All-Star level center that serves as a facilitator. Neither Claxton or Johnson are great passers. Furthermore, they are both signed to long-term deals that could restrict the Kings' future flexiblity.

Why the Nets would do this deal: Having a center who is familiar with being an offensive hub would give Brooklyn the chance to develop their young players in conjunction with an experienced primary option. Sabonis led the NBA in TREB% by grabbing 22.4% of available rebounds last season, which led the NBA. Sabonis might be a good fit specifically for Brooklyn because they can deploy him on offense while having Day'Ron Sharpe as a rim protector to cover up for his defensive liabilities. He took strides as a shooter from deep this season (career-best 40% on 2.2 attempts per game) and also averaged 6.0 assists last season, which takes some playmaking off of D'Angelo Russell's plate (if he resigns with the Nets). He also averaged 19.1 points last season, which would help replace what Johnson provided as a scorer. LaRavia is an interesting evaluation because he fell out of the rotation in Memphis before having a nice little run with the Kings. He played 19 games in Sacramento, shooting 38.5% on 2.7 attempts per game. He's a solid finisher and plays good defense, which is especially valuable to Brooklyn considering their defensive struggles. Furthermore, he's only 23 years old and could have untapped upside considering how long wings take to develop. The Nets have the time to develop and the back half of the 2025 NBA Draft is significantly weaker than expected due to many players going back to school.

Why the Nets would not do this deal: Sabonis is on an expensive long-term deal and though the Nets have tons of cap space, his deal might turn into bad money if the Nets become better much faster than anticipated. There's also very little chance that the Nets could move off of his deal because most teams have their center situation solved. They are also giving up a first-round pick in this deal, which reduces some of their draft capital even if it is a late first.

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