The recent Rudy Gay rumors were mentioned by the Sportsrageous site, which indicates this trade would work when it is run through ESPN’s trade machine. The Lakers would pick up Gay and ship off Nick “Swaggy P” Young and Lou Williams to the Kings. While that sounds good for Los Angeles, would the Sacramento Kings even want that deal? It’s possible based on their current situation, but they may want a bit more.
The Kings were amongst teams semi-contending for the Western Conference playoffs in their most recent season. That’s due to the services of Gay as well as All-Star DeMarcus Cousins, but the team has really been unable to get to that next level. The Lakers are definitely in “rebuild mode” right now. With the additions of several top draft picks over the past years, they are starting to look more talented by the minute. Their young prospects include point guard D’Angelo Russell, big man Julius Randle, and scorer Brandon Ingram.
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Of course, that sends the fans of each and every team (barring maybe Golden State and Cleveland) into a frenzy about picking up Gay for their squad. Most teams in the league want to add as much star power as possible in an effort to compete with the two top contenders. That said, there may also be the notion that Gay would prefer to play for a team that’s a contender himself, rather than go somewhere to wait around and see what develops.
The small forward out of UCONN turned 30 this past August. He will make $13.3 million in the upcoming season, but he is opting out of a $14.3 million player option for 2017-18. Gay, who formerly played for the Toronto Raptors and Memphis Grizzlies, has averaged 18.4 points per game and 79 percent from the free throw line for his career. His three-point shooting has been below average according to CBS Boston, which also speculated on the Celtics trading for him.
Back to the Kings’ needs, the Sacramento Bee has suggested that a trade needs to be done before the 2016-17 NBA season opener. It’s mentioned that the team suffers from a clash of personalities right now and “any seemingly coherent plan.” The Bee even goes so far as to say that Kings general manager Vlade Divac should have “gutted the roster during the offseason.” When they say “gutted,” they are most likely to getting rid of just about every member.
Young has been a bit of a problem for Los Angeles due to his issues with teammate D’Angelo Russell over recorded conversations. As far as his numbers, they’ve been on the decline. Young averaged 7.3 points, 0.6 assists, and 1.8 rebounds a game for the 2015-16 season in just over 19 minutes of play time per game. His playing time has steadily decreased since his arrival to the Lakers in 2013-14, showing a change of scenery might help him revive his career.
While these are just NBA trade rumors, the possibility is there. The Kings may be desperate to part ways with Gay and get whatever they might find. The Lakers certainly want more stars in their lineup, even though several of their current younger players may become them. It would be an intriguing swap between two California basketball squads attempting to claw their way back into the playoffs.
Basketball fans, do you think the Kings and Lakers should do this trade, or would it be a bad move for either side?
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