Many fans were hoping that the Sacramento Kings would be able to move Domantas Sabonis before the trade deadline and kick this rebuild into high gear. That didn't happen. The only way for the Kings to get out from under his massive contract is to be patient and let time do its job.
The Kings have been having a rough time basically since the franchise landed in Sacramento in 1985. There have been a few blips when the team was relevant over the years, but it's been grim for the most part. As such, it's easy to understand why their fans are hungry for positive change.
Unfortunately, that doesn't match up with reality. The process the current front office of the Kings needs to go through to turn this franchise into even a playoff team is going to take an amazing amount of work. Trading players with bad contracts like Sabonis is just the tip of the iceberg.
While Sabonis definitely has his positives, he doesn't fit the Kings' youth movement or defensive focus. But trying to trade him with more than two years left on a very expensive contract just wasn't going to happen so quickly. That's where time comes in for Sacramento.
The Kings are going to have to wait Sabonis out
As the entire league just saw, the market for Domantas Sabonis on his current contract is limited at absolute best. Sure, he's a great rebounder and can be an offensive threat in the paint. But the league is looking for all of that from a big man, plus lockdown defense and three-point shooting.
The number of teams in the league willing to pay a limited center like Sabonis tens of millions of dollars per year is borderline nonexistent. Even the Kings don't want to do it, and he's on their team. But if you give it another year or so, the market for Sabonis could change dramatically.
By the trade deadline in 2027, a full year and millions of dollars will be off his contract. If you look forward to the 2027 offseason, Sabonis' contract is down to one year and...well, still a lot of money but much less than before. That makes trading him easier for other teams in the league to consider.
Scott Perry warned fans that this rebuild was going to be a three to five-year process. That's because you can't rush it. Time is a major part of the equation that hopefully leads to success for the Kings. And rushing it through bad trades just because they're available isn't going to make it better.