Rudy Gay will definitely opt out and test free agency

Kings forward Rudy Gay may have played his last game in Sacramento.

Gay’s agent confirmed to ESPN’s Marc Spears that Gay plans to opt out of the final year of his contract to test the free agent market and could even return to the court by next month.

The 30-year-old is coming off a season in which he played in only 30 games before suffering a fully ruptured Achilles.

In waiving the final year of a three-year, $40 million dollar contract, Gay is leaving $14.2 million on the table. Gay’s name has surfaced in trade talks multiple times throughout the last two seasons and Gay had notified the Kings that he planned on leaving the team back in September.

Some questioned whether or not the latest injury would tilt the scales in favor of opting in and returning to the Kings to rebuild his market value. But Gay says his recovery is ahead of schedule and he expects to be back to full strength come training camp.

There is inherent risk for both Gay and whichever team decides to sign the forward. Gay is leaving a good chunk of money to bet on himself and players often struggle to recover from a major Achilles injury (see: Bryant, Kobe).

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But if Gay returns to form, a team could pick up a quality ISO scorer for a below-market price. A move that could prove valuable for some strapped-for-cash contenders.