The Sacramento Kings are in free-fall mode, sitting 14th in the West with a 4-13 record. On Sunday, NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the team is "willing to listen to offers for players up and down their roster... particularly for Sacramento's veterans." When it comes to Domantas Sabonis, though, a trade may not happen (subscription required). Fischer noted Sabonis's "affinity" for Sacramento, how Vivek Ranadive holds Sabonis in high regard, and that Sabonis isn't expected to request a trade.
Fischer also touched on the difficulties that could arise for the Kings if they made Sabonis available, as one Western Conference executive told him, "It's tough to pay a center that much who doesn't protect the rim and doesn't shoot threes — no matter how great of an offensive hub he can be."
Sacramento is gearing up to be sellers before the Feb. 5 deadline, but it doesn't sound like one of those moves will be a Sabonis trade. Of course, it doesn't help that he is currently out with a partially torn meniscus in his left knee and will be re-evaluated in a few weeks.
Will the Kings trade Domantas Sabonis before the deadline?
Fischer wrote that new GM Scott Perry "realistically understands that he has to undertake a multiyear rebuild," and that the "hope" is Keegan Murray and Nique Clifford will "be a part of that." That reads as if Murray and Clifford are the only two untouchables on the roster.
Although the Kings are signaling that they're ready to tear it down and chase a high draft pick in 2026, that doesn't mean that a Sabonis trade will happen, at least not before the deadline. Anything can change at a moment's notice in the chaotic league that is the NBA, and the deadline is still over two months away. Hopefully, Sabonis will be back on the floor before then, but even that's not guaranteed.
For fans who want to see Sabonis stay around, that wish could be granted. His contract and defensive deficiencies are enough for opposing teams to raise their eyebrows at, and that's before you factor in his injury. Interested teams would presumably want him to help their team make a playoff run come April. Those reasons could keep him in Sacramento past Feb. 5, even if the Kings officially make him available.
It shouldn't necessarily matter whether Sabonis requests a trade, since the NBA is a business, so the Kings wouldn't need his approval to make a trade. However, if Ranadive wants to keep him around, that could make all the difference.