It’s pretty hard to find actual basketball news relating to the Sacramento Kings nowadays, given the whole “relocation” issue that has surrounded the franchise for, well, years. But with the relocation problem seemingly solved after the NBA’s Board of Governors shot down the move, it appears the Kings can now focus on basketball activities.
First up? Tyreke Evans.
The status of the former Rookie of the Year is up in the air as he currently sits in limbo as a restricted free agent. The talented though somewhat flawed player is still only 23 and many teams, including the Kings, feel it’s just a matter of time before Evans turns into the star many felt he’d become after averaging 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in his rookie campaign – something only LeBron James, Michael Jordan and Oscar Robertson can say they accomplished.
But if an offer comes in for Evans that the club feels deems too pricey, they may have their eyes set on the Milwaukee Bucks’ Monta Ellis.
Per CBS’ Ken Berger:
"Oddly, a member of the proposed ownership group trying to keep the Kings in Sacramento has done some background checking on Ellis as a possibility for the Kings if the team decides to part ways with restricted free agent Tyreke Evans this summer, a league source involved in the discussions said."
As Berger points out, the suggestion comes from a member of the ownership group hoping to purchase the Kings so it’s a bit premature to take this with more than a grain of salt, especially since we don’t know who the source was in the ownership group. Was it a proposed minority owner? A proposed majority owner?
Either way, it appears that the NBA offseason is starting to heat up.