Who is the newest Sacramento King, Jalen McDaniels? A look into their trade addition

The Sacramento Kings made a trade with the Toronto Raptors on Thursday ahead of Round 2 of the NBA draft that answered pressing questions regarding their roster construction this offseason.

According to a league source, the Kings sent guard Davion Mitchell, sharp-shooting forward Sasha Vezenkov and the No. 45 overall pick to the Raptors for forward Jalen McDaniels. ESPN was first to report the deal Thursday afternoon.

The move clears the way for No. 13 pick Devin Carter to assume Mitchell’s spot as a backup to De’Aaron Fox along with ending the offseason saga involving Vezenkov, who was the subject on conflicting reports regarding his future with the team after a bumpy first season in 2023-24.

The move also clears up cap space with Toronto taking on Mitchell’s $6.5 million and Vezenkov’s $6.7 million salaries for 2024-25. McDaniels comes to Sacramento slated to make $4.7 million, according to Spotrac. The move creates cap space which could help Sacramento facilitate the addition of more veteran help.

Who is Jalen McDaniels?

McDaniels, 27, is entering his sixth NBA season. The Kings will be his fourth team after getting drafted 52nd overall in the 2019 NBA draft by the Charlotte Hornets. He played in college at San Diego State after going to high school in Federal Way, Washington.

The 6-foot-9 forward played a career-low 10.8 minutes per game for the Raptors last season while making a career-worst 17% of his 3-pointers and averaging 3.4 points per game. In his four years prior, her averaged 20.2 minutes per game and 7.7 points while making 34.5% of his shots from distance.

The Raptors signed him before last season, with vice-Chairman and president Masai Ujiri saying in the announcement: “Jalen is a hard-working, defensive-minded player who we believe has tremendous potential for growth. He brings versatility to both ends of the floor, and we’re excited to see him develop as a member of the Raptors.”

McDaniels profiles as a backup forward who could compete for playing time behind Keegan Murray and Harrison Barnes. The Kings last season lacked depth at forward, with Trey Lyles as the only backup in the regular rotation. It left coach Mike Brown to rely heavily on guards behind his starters. Kessler Edwards, who Sacramento acquired at the trade deadline in 2023, played sparingly and is a pending free agent.

McDaniels’ path to Sacramento

McDaniels was traded from Charlotte to Philadelphia in a four-team deal ahead of the 2023 trade deadline amid his third season. The 76ers acquired him and second-round picks in 2024 and 2029 while sending defensive specialist Matisse Thybulle to the Portland Trailblazers in an effort to get more dynamic offensively.

McDaniels appeared in 24 games for Philadelphia, which included three starts, and made a career-best 40% of his 3-point attempts. He appeared in eight playoff games and averaged nearly 13 minutes and 2.4 points. He signed a two-year, $9.3 million deal with the Raptors last offseason coming off his stretch in Philadelphia which was considered one of the best of his career.

Will the Kings make another move?

Sacramento has been linked in trade talks surrounding Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma and Cameron Johnson of the Brooklyn Nets, The Sacramento Bee’s Jason Anderson reported Wednesday. But any addition of that size has financial ramifications.

Kuzma has three seasons remaining of a four-year, $90 million deal he signed last offseason. Johnson is also on a four-year deal that began last season paying $94.5 million through 2026-27. They are slated to make $23.5 million and $23.6 million this season, respectively.

The Kings could be facing a financial crunch. Fox is eligible for a contract extension next offseason that could be worth $349 million if he makes an All-NBA team this coming season. Murray is also eligible for a new contract next offseason which could be in the $30-million annual range. Domantas Sabonis is entering the first year of a four-year $186 million extension he signed last offseason.

According to Spotrac, the Kings have $15.7 million in salary room before hitting the first apron, which has punitive effects such as not being able to take in more money in trades than a team is sending out (non-apron teams can take in 125% of outgoing salaries in a trade) and would also be prevented from signing a player during the regular season if their salary exceeds the mid-level exception.

Suffice to say, it behooves Sacramento to be judicious with their salaries as they look to improve the roster to advance in the playoffs after losing in the first round and failing in the play-in tournament in the last two seasons.