11 Players the Kings never should have gambled on

5. George Hill

The Kings signed Hill to a three-year $57 million contract in the 2017 free agency. He had been a starting point guard for five straight years and had helped his team get to the playoffs in eight of his first nine NBA seasons. Sacramento had just drafted De’Aaron Fox and wanted a veteran playmaker to assist his development and help the Kings bust their playoff drought.

Fox was a top-five pick, so he was always going to play. Sacramento struggled to make the fit work with Hill and the rookie sharing the floor, which means the veteran's minutes went down. It was quickly clear the Kings were not contenders, and Hill was traded before the deadline. He was coming off the bench by that point, but the team had zero reason to hold onto the veteran.

Hill averaged 10.3 points, 2.8 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 0.9 steals in 26.6 minutes per game for the Kings. He played in just 43 contests before being dealt to the Cavaliers in a three-team deal. The 6’4 guard was primarily a backup for the remainder of his career.

The Sacramento Kings dished out a significant deal to a 31-year-old point guard, and he began to decline. It was another costly miss by the franchise and one that resulted in the team winning just 27 games in the 2017-18 campaign.