Sacramento Kings rumors: Kings to make big mid-season deal?

By Andrew Melnick | Sep 18, 2014

Mar 29, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) drives to the basket past Dallas Mavericks forward Shawn Marion (0) during the second half at the American Airlines Center. Gay leads his team with 30 points. The Mavericks defeated the Kings 103-100. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

In early December, the Toronto Raptors dealt forward Rudy Gay along with big man Aaron Gray and forward Quincy Acy, to the Sacramento Kings for swingman John Salmons, point guard Greivis Vasquez, power forward Patrick Patterson and power forward Chuck Hayes.

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Although the Kings already had a potential star in center DeMarcus Cousins and an excellent point guard in Isaiah Thomas (who they dealt to the phoenix Suns in a sign-and-trade this offseason), they wanted a potential star on the wing and thought they got that in Gay. Gay is often criticized but he showed improvement in Sacramento.

Gay averaged 20.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 45.5% from the field, 33.0% from beyond the arc and 82.2% from the free throw line last season.

Now the Kings are hoping to do the same this season and Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders believes the Kings could make a big move during the season.

"As I said in our Kings preview, that front office has been extremely aggressive and it wouldn’t surprise me at all to see them make a splashy move at some point between now and the deadline. I don’t know what they have up their sleeve, but a big midseason trade is definitely possible, just their Rudy Gay midseason acquisition last year."

The Kings have been tied to Detroit Pistons’ forward Josh Smith but that seems like a bit of a long-shot. They also have to save some money to re-sign Gay in the offseason when he becomes an unrestricted free agent.

Be sure to check FanSided’s official NBA page to keep up to date on the latest news and rumors from around the league as we get you ready for the start of the 2014-2015 season.

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