There is a long list of players in the league whose development was absolutely botched by the Sacramento Kings. One name near the top has to be Davion Mitchell. With him potentially being an unrestricted free agent in 2027, the Kings have a chance to bring him back and get it right this time.
Sacramento drafted Mitchell ninth overall in 2021. The young point guard was considered a top prospect, one who could be great for the Kings. As per usual, the broken system in Sactown utterly dropped the ball with his development as they so often did in that era of the franchise.
During that run, the Kings had De'Aaron Fox as their starter with Tyrese Haliburton as a backup. A few months after Mitchell's arrival, Sacramento traded Hali due to their logjam at point guard. Then in 2024, they traded Mitchell to free up capital, which was followed by Fox several months after that.
Again, the Kings have consistently botched the point guard position, but hope to turn it around with their newest rookie, Darius Acuff Jr. That being said, their current plan to develop him is to throw him into the deep end of the pool without a mentor or a backup point guard on their bench.
If Mitchell is available, the Kings have to take their shot
Sacramento is trying to fix this problem by re-signing Russell Westbrook and/or bringing Victor Oladipo back to the league. All the Kings can afford with their limited salary cap is one veteran minimum, possibly two if they officially stretch DeMar DeRozan's waived contract.
Once this season is finished, both De'Andre Hunter and Zach LaVine will be unrestricted free agents. That's assuming neither player gets an extension. If they both leave, this opens up $75 million of salary cap for the Kings to work with, some of which could be directed towards Mitchell.
Keep in mind that Mitchell has improved significantly since leaving the Kings, particularly during his time in Miami under head coach Erik Spoelstra. His contract is up at the end of this season. If the Heat decide to keep him, they have the cap space and Bird Rights to give him a great contract.
That assumes the Heat want to hang on to Mitchell and don't have their sights set on another potential free agent point guard like Stephen Curry. In that situation, the Kings have to be ready to make a real offer to Mitchell and bring him in to help take pressure off of Acuff.
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