How Kings Can Take Advantage of Three Grizzlies Roster Casualties

As it stands today, the Sacramento Kings are at 14 full-time rostered players, with two of their three two-way slots taken up. This means the Kings can choose to sign one more player to both the full-time roster and their last two-way slot.

NBA teams are permitted to carry 14 players and be in accordance with roster requirements, but the Kings would be better served to use that spot (or their two-way) to take a look at someone who they believe could be part of the next phase of competitive basketball in Sacramento.

It just so happens that the Memphis Grizzlies will need to release four players before the season, and NBA insider Jake Fischer brought up three possible castaways that could be great fits in Sacramento.

“The Grizzlies are going to have to cut four players to make their opening roster just down to 15. I do think it will be one of those … Micah Peavy, DeAngelo Russell, Walter Clayton, Kris Murray.”

Walter Clayton Jr., D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Hawkins and Kris Murray are likely the group of players that could be waived by the Memphis Grizzlies in order to meet the 15-man roster compliance standards, per @JakeLFischer on @BleacherReport.

(via https://t.co/PUmaLi1qdL) pic.twitter.com/yeKjVQqImR
— APHoops (@APH00PS) September 8, 2026

Micah Peavy

While the post mentions Jordan Hawkins, who is also coming over from the New Orleans Pelicans and could be waived, Fischer mentions Micah Peavy specifically. Peavy has great size, measuring in at 6’6.25” at the combine, but his shorter wingspan at 6-foot-7.5 caused some concern when he was coming out of college.

Peavy bounced around from Texas Tech to three years at TCU, and finished at Georgetown as an All-Big East selection in 2024-25. Peavy put up 17 points per game, shot 40% from three on four attempts, and led the Big East in steals with 2.3 per game.

Pelicans rookie Micah Peavy 17 PTS (7-11 FG, 3-5 3P), 7 REB, 2 AST, 4 STL, 1 BLK vs. Pistons https://t.co/qxtypJ4RfK pic.twitter.com/R6H1V318Y1
— Role Player Performances (@BenchHighlights) January 22, 2026

So far, it hasn’t been great offensively for Peavy in the NBA, shooting under 40% from the field and under 30% from three in 913 minutes of action. The major positives with him are that he rarely turns the ball over (6.5% TOV percentage), is incredibly active on defense, and knows that he needs to keep getting threes up even if he isn’t making them (.393% three-point rate).

The offense is still hypothetical at this point, but Peavy would immediately become one of the better perimeter defenders on the Kings and a worthy swing in my opinion.

Walter Clayton Jr.

Walter Clayton Jr. is a player I've gotten to see up close a few times, including multiple NCAA tournament games during Florida’s run to the Championship in 2025. Clayton was one of the best players in the tournament that year and consistently showed up in big moments when his team needed him most. Clayton’s size is not great, and he makes even Darius Acuff Jr. look long with just a 6-foot-4 wingspan.

WALTER CLAYTON JR. POSTER ON DERRICK WHITE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kbAl8q9d2J
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) December 31, 2025

Still, Clayton has demonstrated that he can be a physical, impactful defender when engaged. He’s not going to be a lockdown point-of-attack type of guy at his size, but he’s not going to be a pushover either, and that’s plenty for a Kings team that projects to be one of the worst defenses in the NBA.

Clayton didn’t look great in his limited NBA run last season, but his prior shooting numbers and 90% free-throw percentage provide enough confidence that he can be a threat if left open.

Kris Murray

Kris Murray will likely be a fan-favorite target if he is officially waived, being the twin brother of former fourth overall pick Keegan Murray. Kris wasn’t quite the player Keegan was at Iowa, but he was still a third-team All-American in his final season. Once Keegan had moved on, Kris became the number one option for Fran McCaffrey and put up over 20 points per game.

Much like the other two, Murray hasn’t been able to knock down shots at the NBA level, but he’s shown some promise of being a rotation player in the future.

Kris Murray blocks Keegan! pic.twitter.com/vomDLzBHVr
— Matt George (@MattGeorgeSAC) November 9, 2023

Like Keegan, Kris is adept at using his frame and decent quickness to stay in front of players as an on-ball defender, and he leverages his IQ to be a solid help defender as well. He’s not quite at the level Keegan is defending in isolation or protecting the rim, and he definitely isn’t the same offensive threat, but he could be a good insurance policy in case Ben Simmons doesn’t pan out and/or De’Andre Hunter is moved at the deadline.

The big swing skill with Kris is shooting, and if he can knock down wide-open threes at a league-average rate, he’ll have a role in the NBA. He just hasn’t shown that he can do that so far.

Hierarchy for the Kings

If I were to rank all three players in terms of fit for the Kings, it would be Peavy first, then Clayton Jr., and Murray rounding the group out.

Peavy’s defense and size as a guard are exactly what the Kings need next to Darius Acuff Jr., and I’m confident he can be a decent shooter in the NBA when given extended minutes. If he’s waived, in my opinion, this would be a no-brainer for Sacramento. Clayton Jr. is also interesting as another ball-handler off the bench, but Murray’s skill set is likely a bit redundant after the Kings (surprisingly) put together a solid group of wings.

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