Why Kings Waived Fan-Favorite Isaac Jones To Bring in Achiuwa

The Sacramento Kings had to waive someone to open up a roster spot for Precious Achiuwa, and Isaac Jones was the odd man out on the bench.

Apr 11, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings center Isaac Jones (3) before the game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

I’m never shy to criticize the Sacramento Kings’ decisions, along with most of the local media. The team makes boneheaded move after boneheaded move and never seems to learn from mistakes.

From the Tyrese Haliburton trade to taking on Zach LaVine in the De’Aaron Fox deal, there’s no shortage of things to criticize the Kings for. This is exactly why I find it important to stay unbiased and admit when a move does actually make sense, even if fans hate it. 

The Kings are expected to waive second-year center Isaac Jones to make roster space to sign Achiuwa, sources said. https://t.co/Rl2tiUUh1w

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 4, 2025

Isaac Jones has been a favorite among Kings fans since signing with the team as an undrafted free agent. Jones would play himself into a full NBA contract, but the current coaching staff and front office saw the need for more experience in the front court and decided to bring in Precious Achiuwa at the expense of Jones. X was flooded with upset fans and media members this morning, but there are real reasons why this wasn’t more of the same from Sacramento. 

Money Talks

The first reason is the simplest: Isaac Jones’ contract was not fully guaranteed. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, Sacramento will take a $191,043 cap hit and have $214,151 applied to team salary and luxury tax. While the Kings are still eating money, there were no other players on the team with non-guaranteed deals.

Most fans and some of the media have pointed to Dario Saric and Doug McDermott as better options to waive than Jones, with how little they’ve played this season (or at all in McDermott's case). The issue is that both players have guaranteed salaries, so the Kings would be eating the entirety of their deals if they waived them. Saric is making $5.4 million, and McDermott is making about $2.3 million this year. Neither deal is massive, but there are also some big reasons why saving money isn’t the only benefit to keeping Saric and McDermott. 

Isaac Jones was UNSTOPPABLE tonight for the Kings! The @SacramentoKings two-way signee erupted for a career-high 42 points on 71% shooting to help lead the @StocktonKings to a nail-biting win. 👑 pic.twitter.com/IBqAqKKkXR

— NBA G League (@nbagleague) January 21, 2025

Deal or No Deal

Apr 13, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; New York Knicks forward Precious Achiuwa (5) hangs on the rim after dunking the ball during the first half against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

In the NBA, expiring contracts have a ton of value when it comes to facilitating trades. The NBA’s collective bargaining agreement requires teams to adhere to salary-matching regulations when making a trade, so when teams are given the option of taking long- or short-term money, most of the time they will take the short-term.

The Kings have even taken this route when they chose to take on Saric’s deal at the expense of Jonas Valančiūnas. Jones’ salary could still have been used in a trade, of course; however, his contract value makes him less useful as a salary-matching piece than Dario Saric.

The one argument that I would accept here is that the Kings did not need to sign McDermott to a fully guaranteed deal. His deal is only worth about $100,000 more than Isaac Jones’, which doesn’t make him a much better option for salary-matching purposes, and Jones at least gives some upside as a younger player.

Alas, the Kings did guarantee McDermott’s deal, so waiving Isaac Jones was the only way they could make room for Achiuwa without taking a multi-million dollar hit. The Kings do not have a ton of flexibility when it comes to making a move, and there’s no promise that Saric and/or McDermott will be moved, but having close to $8 million in expiring contracts isn’t a bad thing to have in your back pocket.

Precious Achiuwa crazy block on Darius Garland pic.twitter.com/Hug3VyvcVT

— Knicks Highlights (@KnicksClipss) March 4, 2024

Precious Little Frontcourt Depth 

Whether those of us on the outside looking in agree or not, the Kings did not believe that Isaac Jones could provide the depth they needed in the frontcourt. Sacramento has been crushed on the glass all season and sits dead last in rebounds per game for the entire league despite having one of the best rebounders in the league as their starting center.

Keegan Murray is a very good rebounder and is sorely missed, but he still has a way to go in his recovery, and the Kings wouldn’t be able to stay afloat without some help. Russell Westbrook, who stands at about 6'4”, has now started three games at power forward because the Kings do not feel that their other options are viable.

In the games that Westbrook didn’t start, Christie only chose to go to Isaac Jones once and even opted to start two-way rookie Dylan Cardwell over him against the Milwaukee Bucks. Again, whether or not we agree, the writing has been on the wall with Jones this season. 

With Achiuwa, the Kings bring in a veteran who has played over 6000 more minutes in the NBA than Jones while being less than a year older. Precious has a ton of experience and has been a capable defender and rebounder throughout his career.

This is the kind of move that the Kings needed to make if they want to survive while Murray is injured, and if it all works out, Achiuwa may even turn into a long-term option in Christie’s rotation. It’s unfortunate to lose Jones, but this was the right move for the Kings, given the situation they’ve put themselves in.