Kings Trade Deadline FAQ: Picks, Cap Space, Exceptions, and Real Limits

With under a week until the NBA trade deadline, it is worth a look at what the Sacramento Kings can and should do before the buzzer sounds on February 5 at noon PT. Many fans typically have questions ahead of the trade deadline, so below, we answer some frequently asked questions to help make the deadline easier to follow as the Kings gear up to make major changes.

How Much Cap Space does Sacramento Have?

Simply put, none.

Sacramento Kings Cap Sheet | James McCauley

Sacramento is currently $31.3M over the cap, $3.5 below the luxury tax, and $7.9M below the 1st Apron, where they are hard capped (cannot exceed this amount no matter what) because of the Dennis Schroder S&T last summer. None of this is unique - 16 other teams are hard capped at the 1st Apron (4 more are hard capped at the 2nd).

As a brief aside - Apron triggers are still rather opaque, so here is a guide. TLDR: if you do the thing on the left, you are hard-capped at the corresponding Apron level.

Since Sacramento has not paid the tax in decades, it is safe to assume they would not have bumped up on the 1st Apron regardless of the hard cap.

Does Cap Space Affect Their Trade Plans?

Yes - now and long-term. Sacramento has more salary on the books next year (currently just $16.8M under the tax in 26-27, with just 9 players signed) than they do with a full roster right now.

That is (i) without accounting for a top-6 pick’s rookie scale salary ($7-10M depending where the pick lands), (ii) before filling the roster out with 4 more minimum contracts ($2.5-3M apiece, so ~$10-12M), and (iii) letting anyone that will make more than the minimum walk. Not great!

In normal rebuilds, teams are usually young, cheap, and able to use their books to take on bad money attached to an asset.

Take the Washington Wizards. Washington had next to no money on their books, saw four-time All-Star Trae Young on the outs in Atlanta, and acquired him for expiring money (C.J. McCollum) and a rotational wing (Corey Kispert). No picks. Given the price, a worthwhile gamble on a talented floor general to help Washington’s young core develop.

Similarly (perhaps more alarmingly), the Denver Nuggets gave the Brooklyn Nets - another team that was flush with cap space at the time - an unprotected 2032 first for taking on Michael Porter Jr.’s contract last summer in exchange for Cam Johnson, who made 12% less of the cap than Porter Jr.

Porter Jr. has since played himself into a hot commodity, potentially fetching Brooklyn several more firsts. Turning Cam Johnson into (potentially) three firsts by getting bad money back and by your program rehabbing the player. Perks of having money to use.

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The Kings, as a unique rebuilding team, are stuck with bad money of their own, depriving them of the opportunity to accumulate assets through standard practices in a rebuild, as most teams do.

If it cost the Nuggets a first to dump Porter Jr. (2/$79M left on contract when traded) and the Hawks received no firsts for Young (1/$49M PO remaining), that does not bode well for potential Domantas Sabonis returns (2/$98M remaining).

It is not surprising that Sacramento is at an impasse as they ask for a first for Sabonis when, in reality, the market probably says they need to be sending one out with him.

The front office has been adamant about not attaching assets to their bloated contracts for salary relief. As it stands, though, some simple math (16.8 - 8.5 - 11 = -2.7, over the tax) shows they essentially have to either get off of money or pay the tax.

Without waiving DeRozan before his salary becomes fully guaranteed on 1/7/27 and/or exploring other creative avenues, something will have to give soon.

What is a Traded Player Exception?

A TPE is a way teams can trade one player for other player(s) whose salaries for that year are equal to:

There is more nuance to this, but the above chart is a baseline for what people mean when they say “X is great for salary matching.”

Here is a list of current TPEs held by Sacramento:

Kings' traded player exceptions | James McCauley

What is a Poison Pill Provision?

The PPP will only come into play if the Kings decide to trade Keegan Murray. If they did this, Sacramento’s outgoing salary would be $11.1M, and the incoming salary for the acquiring team would be $25.2M (AAV of his extension plus this season’s salary). Even if Sacramento did decide to trade Murray, it is very tough to make trade math work with that incoming/outgoing discrepancy.

What Picks Can the Kings Trade?

Firsts

NBA teams can trade picks in drafts up to seven years in the future. Per the Stepien Rule, teams cannot trade firsts if it would leave them without firsts in two consecutive years.

Sacramento controls all of their own firsts through 2032, aside from San Antonio owning their swap rights in 2031 from the DeMar DeRozan sign and trade (the Spurs getting Harrison Barnes and a distant swap with the Kings remains highway robbery).

As nice as it would be to be able to accumulate more firsts, it is highly unlikely that happens given the trade market discussed above.

Sacramento Kings Draft Capital Tracker | James McCauley

Seconds

Sacramento is lean on second-round picks, as they sent several of those out in the Davion Mitchell & Sasha Vezenkov trade with Toronto and the Jake LaRavia trade at last year's deadline.

So, Sacramento could stand to add some picks here. As discussed here before, this is the return they are looking at when it comes to Keon Ellis.

How Does the CBA Impact Sacramento’s Roster?

During the season, teams are allowed a maximum of 15 players on their active roster, and 3 on two-way contracts. They are allowed to have fewer than 14 players on standard NBA contracts for just 28 days of the regular season (only 14 consecutive days at a time).

Sacramento currently has all active and two-way slots filled, meaning they cannot send more players out than they get back without waiving someone. Sacramento probably needs to account for Dylan Cardwell’s conversion to a standard contract by sending out one more player than they take back.

Any Other Minutiae We Should Know?

Yes - several last relevant points to add.

As has been widely reported, as people realize the dire straits Sacramento is in with Ellis (on a minimum contract), teams can trade a player on a veteran minimum without matching salary. In other words, Ellis can be traded for only picks and no players. Given the need to clear a roster spot for Cardwell, Ellis for a couple second round picks feels very realistic, both from a roster space and cap space standpoint.

Additionally, Sacramento has its NTMLE to use as a trade exception, meaning they can acquire a player that fits into the $14.1M figure. They did this last deadline when they acquired Jonas Valanciunas, absorbing his $10M salary with the NTMLE they did not use in the summer, which then became a trade exception for this sort of scenario.

Will We See Our Favorite Player Sent to Sacramento This Deadline?

Maybe. Teams are limited to receiving and sending a total of 5.15% of the salary cap out in cash considerations each league year. This year, the limit is $7,964,000.

Kings' cash considerations | James McCauley

Sacramento has not received any cash this season, so it is absolutely possible that the fan favorite heads to Sacramento in the coming days.