Trading De’Aaron Fox Is a Matter of When, Not If, for Kings

The Case to Trade De’Aaron Fox Now

This season has not gone the way that Monte McNair and the front office expected. The Sacramento Kings are currently 11th in the Western Conference, which is outside of the play-in game. That’s a far cry from the initial singular focus of making the playoffs.

While that goal is technically still within reach, it will take some drastic change to make it a legitimate possibility, let alone a reality. When looking at the Kings’ top assets, De’Aaron Fox is not only among the best, but his salary also makes it easy to bring back a talented player in the deal.

There are quite a few sizable talents who have hit the rumor mill this season. Players like Ben Simmons, Brandon Ingram, or even Domantas Sabonis are some of the names often connected to De’Aaron Fox, along with Jaylen Brown, who is in a slightly higher category.

With players like these potentially available in the trade market, it may be wise for the Kings to explore a Fox swap now before too many of these players become unavailable. It’s not often such a collection of names are attainable near the deadline, but that just so happens to be the case this season.

While there’s no telling if just that acquisition could turn things around for the Kings, it certainly is a start. Sacramento would have to make other moves as well, but it should all start with De’Aaron Fox and whichever player they can get in return.

The only real way any of this makes sense, though, is if Monte McNair is still chasing this dream of making the playoffs, which he very well may do. If that is the case and an opportunity for a deal presents itself, only then should a deal be struck this season. If that is not the case, the offseason is the best time for a De’Aaron Fox deal.