Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair breaks down acquisition of former Pacers wing Chris Duarte
The Indiana Pacers most important departure this offseason was young wing Chris Duarte, a former lottery pick that had a solid first season for the Pacers. He was shipped to the Sacramento Kings for two second-round picks.
A variety of factors led to the deal. The Pacers added Bruce Brown and Ben Sheppard in the offseason, and on top of Buddy Hield and Bennedict Mathurin, the team has a lot of depth at the guard/wing spots. Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith will get minutes at those spots, too. That meant playing time would have been hard to come by for Duarte.
In addition, the 26-year old had a down year in season two. After making the All-Rookie Second Team as a rookie, Duarte's scoring, rebounding, passing, and efficiency were all down. Injuries made it hard for him to fit in and find his place, but he still struggled with consistency.
"I'm not going to lie. It was a surprise for me," Duarte said of the trade. He is looking forward to being reunited with Domantas Sabonis in Sacramento as the two overlapped with the Pacers.
Recently, Kings general manager Monte McNair spoke about the trade for the first time. He sat down with NBC Sports Bay Area's Kyle Draper to talk about several offseason topics, and Duarte's relationship with Sabonis came up.
"They had a great relationship, [and] chemistry on the court in Indiana. We're hoping to see that here," McNair shared. The Pacers, who went 25-57 in the season that both players were on the team, had a +1.48 net rating with the pair on the court across 849 minutes.
Duarte averaged 7.9 points and 2.5 rebounds per game this past season. As a rookie, his numbers were much better. Those figures were 13.1 and 4.1, respectively, during his first campaign.
McNair added that the relationship between the two players was "just one piece," of the Duarte acquisition. Sacramento has been tracking him since before the 2021 NBA Draft and kept their eye on him since joining the pros. Indiana's general manager, Chad Buchanan, said something similar on the Setting The Pace podcast recently.
"Somebody with size, with shooting, with the ability to defend," McNair said of Duarte. "Can make a play. I think he's going to fit in with how we play on both ends of the court."
The Kings need wing depth off the bench, and Duarte can supply it. He should get minutes for Sacramento. The whole interview can be seen here.
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