The Kings are in a peculiar situation. Sacramento is out to a sluggish start to begin the 2025-26 season while its roster is built around a trio of veterans, although they committed to Keegan Murray with a long-term extension over the offseason.
If the franchise continues to tumble, they could look to trade some vets to find financial flexibility moving forward and further stock the cupboard with more draft picks. Should that come to fruition, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and 29-year-old star forward Domantas Sabonis are the most obvious trade candidates.
Sabonis, a three-time All-Star and the NBA’s rebounding leader in each of the past three seasons, is the most prized asset that could net Sacramento a considerable haul should he become available. That’s not to say he doesn’t bring concerns for potential suitors, mainly in the sense of his lack of shooting and rim-protecting abilities. And most importantly, his massive salary that remains on the books for two more seasons after this year.
Nonetheless, players of his stature are difficult to come by and teams looking to make a push toward contention would need to put forth a decent deal with expiring contracts, interesting young players and/or draft capital to bring him in.
Here are three potential destinations and trade packages for Sabonis if he’s made available on the trade market this year:
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors got a boost when they dealt for Jimmy Butler at last year’s trade deadline and they can make another splash this year with a move for Sabonis. Golden State could use some oomph, as Butler said himself, after a recent loss to the Thunder.
There’s a path to making the deal without giving up any member of the team’s core, which is difficult at Sabonis’s $42.3 million salary this season. Even so, the Warriors would need to give up a haul to acquire the star forward, but it may be beneficial to do so to maximize what’s left of Steph Curry’s career. A potential deal would likely include Jonathan Kuminga, who can’t be traded until Jan. 15, plus additional salary and considerable draft compensation to bring in Sabonis, who’s under contract through the 2027-28 season. That means the Warriors would have to stomach his salary for two more years beyond this season, but it may be worth it to make a run at a title alongside Curry, Butler and Draymond Green.
Potential trade package:
- Warriors receive: Domantas Sabonis
- Kings receive: Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, Buddy Hield, 2026 first-round pick, 2027 first-round pick swap, 2028 first-round pick
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers are another veteran-heavy squad who could be interested in Sabonis’s services. Los Angeles’ biggest asset in a trade is John Collins’s $26.6 million expiring contract, which gets them a good chunk of the way toward Sabonis’s $42.3 million salary. L.A. could then add Bogdan Bogdanović and Bradley Beal (who is undergoing season-ending surgery) to get the rest of the way there. Beal and Bogdanović each have one year left on their deals, which could give the Kings some leverage to request additional draft capital from the Clippers.
L.A. may not be willing to surrender more than one first-round pick for Sabonis, who is set to make $45.5 million next year and $48.6 million in 2027-28. However, if the Clippers feel the need to immediately turn around their poor start to the season, there’s a way they could add the star forward to James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Ivica Zubac.
Potential trade package:
- Clippers receive: Domantas Sabonis
- Kings receive: John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanović, Bradley Beal, 2027 first-round pick (OKC owns rights to swap), 2029 first-round pick (top-three protected, 76ers have rights to swap 4-30)
Detroit Pistons
Detroit is a young team that could decide to make a splash after a strong start to the campaign following their improbable turnaround a season ago that saw them not only make the playoffs, but take the Knicks to six games in the first round. Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon has one of the more interesting packages he could offer on the trade market, too.
Tobias Harris is on a $26.6 million expiring contract, which would almost certainly get included in any splashy trade the Pistons may make. They possess a number of interesting young players that could intrigue the Kings or other teams on the trade market. Jaden Ivey is a good bet for Sacramento and makes sense alongside their long-term commitment to Murray. Plus, Detroit owns all of their future first-round picks, although Langdon may not want to part with more than one when taking back Sabonis’s massive salary.
Sabonis would work alongside franchise cornerstone Cade Cunningham, but the forward’s lack of shooting raises questions next to Detroit’s other core pieces of Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson.
- Pistons receive: Domantas Sabonis
- Kings receive: Tobias Harris, Jaden Ivey, 2026 first-round pick (lottery protected)
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Three Domantas Sabonis Trade Destinations If Kings Decide to Enter a Rebuild.
