Is Richaun Holmes leaving Kings? Should Sacramento get new center in draft or free agency?

Kings coach Luke Walton wants Richaun Holmes to stay and Holmes would like to return, but now general manager Monte McNair has to figure out if the dollars make sense for Sacramento.

Holmes, 27, is entering free agency after averaging career highs of 14.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 blocks last season. He will be one of the top centers available when free agency begins Aug. 3. Holmes could command upwards of $15 million per year — maybe closer to $18 million, according to The Athletic’s John Hollinger — a figure that would be impossible for the Kings to match unless they create significant salary cap space in a trade involving Harrison Barnes or Buddy Hield.

The Kings will have a huge void to fill at the center position if they can’t find a way to pay Holmes more than the roughly $11 million in starting salary they can offer using his early Bird rights. The Kings can bring back Damian Jones, whose $1.97 million contract becomes guaranteed Aug. 10, but they might also need to look to the July 29 NBA Draft or free agency for a replacement.

The next three weeks will tell us a lot about how this Kings team will be constructed for the 2021-22 season. This is a front office that generally wants to pick the best player available in the draft while filling immediate needs through free agency, so that could influence the decision making. The wildcard is the trade market, where the Kings are being very aggressive.

Draft prospects

USC center Evan Mobley would be a godsend for Sacramento, but he will be gone long before the Kings make their selection at No. 9 in next week’s draft. Instead, the Kings could turn to Turkish big man Alperen Sengun or Texas center Kai Jones, both of whom are rising on draft boards and have been to Sacramento for workouts.

Sengun is 6-foot-10 and 240 pounds. He was recently named MVP of the Turkish Super League at 18 years old after averaging 19.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals. Sengun is very gifted offensively. Concerns about his defense could give Sacramento second thoughts, but Tankathon.com and NBADraftRoom.com currently have the Kings picking Sengun at No. 9.

Jones, 20, is 6-11 ½ and 221 pounds. He averaged 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, although he had more eye-pleasing per-36 averages of 13.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.0 blocks. Jones isn’t as gifted as Sengun offensively, but he hit 38.1% from 3-point range and has huge upside as a versatile defender who can protect the rim or step out to guard the perimeter.

Free agents

HoopsHype.com’s Michael Scotto recently reported the Kings could target Nerlens Noel if they lose Holmes in free agency.

Noel, 27, started 41 games for the New York Knicks last season, averaging 5.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.1 steals in 24.2 minutes per game. He was first in the NBA in defensive box plus/minus (3.5), second in defensive rating (101.2) and block percentage (8.7), and third in blocked shots (141), blocks per game (2.2)) and defensive win shares (3.6).

Noel is slightly built at 6-foot-11 and 220 pounds, but he is a high-energy player who contests everything around the rim. Noel would make a lot of sense for Sacramento if Holmes leaves, but there will be other suitors for his services.

Other free agent centers include Enes Kanter, Daniel Theis, Tristan Thompson, Dwight Howard, Cody Zeller, Willy Hernangomez and a whole host of former Kings big men, including Alex Len, DeMarcus Cousins, Willie Cauley-Stein, Hassan Whiteside and Dewayne Dedmon.