Ah, our first and only three-team trade, coming from Sactown Royalty’s Richard Ivanowski. While incredibly unlikely to happen, there are rumors to suggest this could at least be a possible trade.
There is a lot to unpack here, obviously but let’s start with the Kings perspective. Right off the bat, they have to take on Brandon Knight’s contract that has one-year and $15.6 million remaining — a lot for a player who won’t play at all for Sacramento. Still, they get a true backup point guard with playoff experience in Jeremy Lin, who’s also no slouch himself.
In 42 games, Lin is averaging 10.9 points per game, 2.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists on 47.9 percent shooting from the field, while playing just under 20 minutes per game. Lin wouldn’t come in and take over the sixth-man role, but he would add stability to the Sacramento Kings backup point guard role, which in turn could help the Kings win more games while also reducing De’Aaron Fox’s role and giving him games off to rest.
Furthermore, the get Taurean Prince, who’s the true prize here. Prince is a 24-year-old small forward in his third season — where he’s improved year over year. Currently, Prince is averaging 14 points, 4.1 rebounds and two assists on 43.1 percent shooting. Prince would help fill the Kings small forward need, but he has missed time due to injury, limiting him to just 25 games this season.
As for the Hawks and Rockets, the Hawks add some draft capital and clear some cap-space, while the Rockets get a center who could play a big role for them while Clint Capela is out due to injury. Three team trades, however, are notoriously hard to orchestrate which means this is likely a pipe-dream, but should it come to fruition — this could propel the Sacramento Kings into the playoffs.