NBA Insider Reports Kings Are Active In Trade Talks, Not Desperate

Ahead of what appears to be a busy trade deadline for the Sacramento Kings, it's been reported that the Kings aren't planning on using one of their best trade assets to sweeten any deals.

Nov 30, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Zach LaVine (8) controls the ball against the Memphis Grizzlies during the third quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

Despite a truly horrendous showing in the NBA Cup, the Sacramento Kings were the beneficiaries of a slow week, with the focus being on the final in Las Vegas. While former head coach Mike Brown was leading the New York Knicks to Cup glory, the Kings brass has apparently been hard at work fielding trades from the rest of the league.

It’s a well-known fact that Sacramento is open to moving most of the veterans on the roster, including Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Dennis Schroder, and maybe even Domantas Sabonis. Sabonis and LaVine may be particularly challenging to move due to their massive contracts in a time when the second apron is looming over many teams around the league.

LaVine has a player option for nearly $49 million next year, and Sabonis is under contract for two more years at an AAV over $47 million. One way to make those contracts easier to digest would be to add draft capital or a promising young player, like Keon Ellis, but Marc Stein has reported that the Kings have no intention of sweetening the deals at this juncture. 

“they do not intend to attach draft capital to veteran contracts to try to move them … or use Keon Ellis' contract to try to sweeten deals.”

Zach LaVine and the Bulls have agreed to a five-year, $215M max contract extension, Klutch Sports announced Friday. pic.twitter.com/1GUz9w6ha0

— ESPN (@espn) July 1, 2022

Distressed, Not Desperate

When it comes to LaVine, DeRozan, Schröder, and even Sabonis, I would describe them as distressed assets. In real estate, a distressed asset is something that is usually sold at a discount due to the owner’s financial or personal situation. For the Kings, a 6-20 start has likely lowered the price tag for most, if not all, of those veterans listed.

Sacramento is starting to say the quiet part out loud when it comes to their plan to focus on youth going forward. Given that, it wouldn’t be all that surprising to see a fire sale, but it doesn’t seem like we’ve hit Defcon 1 just yet. Including draft capital just to move off of big contracts is never a smart decision for a rebuilding team; however, it is interesting that the Kings aren’t planning on adding Ellis to any deal. 

"Ellis has been attracting trade feelers for some time, given the leaguewide dearth of 3-and-D players currently available.”

Nov 20, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaylen Wells (0) handles the ball as Sacramento Kings guard Keon Ellis (23) defends during the second quarter at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Ellis has been all over the news cycles lately as teams smell blood in the water with his shortage of consistent playing time and see an opportunity to grab one of the better 3 & D guards in the NBA at a discount. For some reason, there seems to be a massive disconnect between what Doug Christie and Scott Perry say about Ellis in the media and how much playing time he receives. By all accounts, Ellis represents Perry’s six pillars that he continues to preach, but that hasn’t been enough to get him the 20+ minutes per game that most think he deserves.

Keon Ellis - defensive playmaking 😈 pic.twitter.com/QNtaamW1OC

— Brett Usher (@UsherNBA) February 11, 2025

Fans have also chimed in with “We Want Keon” chants at home games as they grow tired of watching the more established players fail to defend on the perimeter. Ellis is a free agent at the end of this season, and many fans and local media members suspect that the Kings may have burned their bridge with him after picking up his cheaper team option rather than signing him to a long-term deal. There’s plenty of evidence to defend that position, but there also remains the chance that Ellis and Sacramento find some common ground on a contract in February.

Patience Is A Virtue

Patience has to be near the top of the list of things that Kings’ fans do not want to hear anymore. After such a short stint of success with the Beam Team, Sacramento looks to be falling back into the spiral that led to one of the worst playoff droughts in sports history.

This fanbase has been as loyal as any, and they’re tired of watching expensive veterans lose game after game. While adding draft picks or young players to get off bad contracts will always make deals more enticing to buyers, it can also elongate rebuilding processes. As much as everyone watching the Kings wants them to take the first offer that comes their way for players like LaVine and DeRozan, that just isn’t the smart move. 

After an ill-advised trade that sent De’Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs and brought LaVine and just two first-round picks back for the Kings, Perry has to be careful not to dig the team into an even deeper hole.

Not only should the Kings not include Ellis or future first-round picks, but they also need to be careful not to take back more hefty contracts that will put them in the same place that they stand currently. A lot can change before the trade deadline, but as of now, it sounds like the Kings are finally taking their medicine and waiting for the right move.