NBA Draft Rumors: Sacramento Kings likely to trade No. 8 pick?
By Bryan Rose
The Sacramento Kings had hoped the ping pong balls would bounce their way and put them in position to draft Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins or even Jabari Parker.
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Unfortunately for them, not only did that happen but thanks to the Cleveland Cavaliers moving up the Kings actually fell backwards and now currently hold the No. 8 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. That isn’t exactly the type of selection a team looking to make a return to the postseason is all that excited over and because of that, many expected the Kings to make attempts to trade the pick.
Those assumptions have proven true as the Kings initially dangled the pick however thanks to the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics also attempting to move their selections (they pick directly before the Kings), the market probably hasn’t been what the Kings had hoped for.
Regardless, not overly interested in waiting another two or three seasons for a young player to mature, the playoff-hungry front office of the Kings is reportedly still looking to move the pick and Chad Ford of ESPN (via HoopsRumors) suggests they’re more likely to trade it than keep it.
“The Kings are actively attempting to trade the No. 8 pick, Ford writes, adding that multiple sources tell him that Sacramento is more likely to trade the pick than to hold on to it.”
Sacramento has allegedly held trade talks with the Atlanta Hawks regarding such a pick, though it’s not known how serious those discussions have been or who initiated them.