After making the NBA playoffs last season, the Sacramento Kings were unable to build on that momentum as they missed the 2024 postseason.
The Kings narrowly missed qualifying as they lost their Play-In Tournament game against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Sacramento was an up-and-down team throughout the 2023-24 NBA season because their defense was average at best.
While Domantis Sabonis was masterful as the offense’s hub, he was unable to protect the rim well enough in high-stakes games.
The front office needs to find players who can shore up their paint defense in the offseason if they hope to compete with the rest of the Western Conference next season.
With that in mind, it appears that Sacramento is the frontrunner to land Jonas Valanciunas, who’s set to hit unrestricted free agency, per Bovada via NBACentral.
The Sacramento Kings are the favorites to win the Jonas Valanciunas sweepstakes, per @BovadaOfficial
Sacramento Kings: +400
Los Angeles Clippers: +500
Charlotte Hornets: +550
Utah Jazz: +550
Chicago Bulls: +550
Washington Wizards: +650
Oklahoma City Thunder: +650
Brooklyn Nets:… pic.twitter.com/BNFLEZUohC
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 18, 2024
Valanciunas saw his role dwindle in New Orleans, particularly down the stretch as he often times was benched in favor of Larry Nance Jr.
The veteran center is a bruiser who does his best work in the paint either posting up or grabbing offensive rebounds for put-backs.
Although he’s dabbled with shooting from beyond the arc, he’s most comfortable near the rim.
Defensively, he’s compromised when he has to guard in space, but he can definitely hold his own guarding other centers who prefer to post up.
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