3 emergency trades for Kings to convince De’Aaron Fox to stick around

The firing of Mike Brown was a surprise but things clearly needed to change. Two years ago, the Sacramento Kings were the third seed in the Western Conference. They regressed to the ninth seed last season and are now sitting four games below .500 and are the 12th seed.

Even though they are struggling, their two stars, De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, are putting up the best numbers of their career. This has caused a lot of teams, such as the San Antonio Spurs and the Orlando Magic, to have a lot of interest in trading for Fox.

The Kings are statistically a better team than their record. They rank eighth in offensive rating, 15th in defensive rating, and have a positive net rating. They have lost a lot of close games, with 14 of their 19 losses coming in games decided by 10 points or less.

If they can win some of the close games and go on a few winning streaks, they're right back in the playoff mix. If they can't Fox will be out. Here are three trades to convince Fox to stick around.

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3. Kevin Huerter and Trey Lyles for Jerami Grant

A big part of the Kings' success in 2023 was their 3-point shooting. They ranked ninth in the NBA in 3-point percentage and ranked fifth in makes per game. This season they are 24th in percentage, at 33.8 percent, and 25th in makes per game.

Kevin Huerter is supposed to be a great outside threat, a career 37.6 percent 3-point shooter, but this season he has been horrendous shooting just 30.3 percent. Making $16 million, he must be one of the players Sacramento tries to ship to improve the team.

Jerami Grant has averaged 20.8 points per game on .446/.378/.828 splits over the last four seasons. His shooting percentages are down for this season at .382/.382/.820 splits, but he is in a bad situation with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Adding Lyles to the deal is strictly for matching contracts but Lyles is also having a down year. Grant would be coming in to increase the floor spacing, provide all-around scoring and should be another defender. Since going to Portland, his defense hasn't been as good as years passed but in a smaller role, he should go back to his defensive roots.

Grant can play multiple positions, allowing DeRozan to play as a two guard and if Keegan Murray can turn around his shooting, they could have a dangerous starting five. Fox and Sabonis need floor spacing to operate in the paint which Huerter and Lyles aren't providing at the level Grant could. The Kings would almost certainly need to include a pick to make this work and it still might be a longshot. But it's worth looking into.

2. DeMar DeRozan and two firsts for Cameron Johnson

Cameron Johnson is having the best year of his career. He's averaging 19.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and three assists per on .496/.436/.895 shooting splits. Since the start of December, he's putting up 22.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists on .509/.457/.892 splits. With the Nets looking to be in the Cooper Flagg race, they want to get rid of the borderline All-Star.

When DeMar DeRozan came into Sacramento, it was meant to be a massive upgrade over Harrison Barnes. Through the first 34 games, the fit hasn't been there. With a lot of their shooters not shooting as well, and DeRozan not being a shooter, there's no floor spacing.

On the other hand, Johnson is a 3-point specialist and is providing similar numbers to what DeRozan is giving in other categories. They're both averaging similar numbers in points, rebounds, assists and even defensive rating, but Johnson has him beat in almost every other offensive category.

Even though DeRozan may be viewed as a better player, Johnson would be a much better fit in Sacramento. The floor spacing, near all-star caliber scoring, and ability to take over a game would make the Kings a lot better. As one of the most sought-after players in the trade market, the Kings can give a great offer to land him.

1. Kevin Huerter and DeMar DeRozan for Zach LaVine

As mentioned previously, Kevin Huerter is not shooting the ball at the clip he normally does. For that being his main role, he can't help the team be better in other areas if he's not making his 3s. DeMar DeRozan, despite still being great at what he does, his playstyle has not fit well next to De'Aaron Fox and Sabonis.

Zach LaVine is one of the best players on the market, and since his name has entered the trade rumors, he's been on a tear. This season he's averaging 22.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists on .503/.444/.807 shooting splits.

LaVine is making over $43 million, and DeRozan's $23 million contract and Huerter's $16 million is enough to match it. Ironically enough, this would send DeRozan back to Chicago but for Sacramento, they get a younger star, who would be a much better fit next to De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis.

Huerter's lackluster 3-point shooting and DeRozan's refusal to take 3s is immediately fixed by LaVine. He's ninth in 3-point percentage and shoots over seven 3s a game. Not to mention, his athleticism also allows him to be one of the best finishers at the rim.

LaVine and Sabonis could do a lot of what Huerter and Sabonis used to do, dribble handoffs. Sabonis is great at screening off those, and LaVine will get many wide-open 3s. If the help defender comes, he has the ability to find the open man.

Even though LaVine wouldn't improve them defensively, he would fix a lot more problems offensively, thus creating more opportunities for Fox to be successful and potentially him staying.