Source: Sacramento Kings plan to sign three-time NBA champion and Olympic gold medalist

JaVale McGee has already helped teams win NBA championships in two California cities. Now, he will try to aid a third in a city where his mother once played for the WNBA’s Sacramento Monarchs.

A league source told The Sacramento Bee the Kings were planning to sign McGee after he cleared waivers Thursday, confirming a report from Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but McGee will come to training camp with an opportunity to compete for a backup role behind All-NBA center Domantas Sabonis.

That competition could be intense with Alex Len, Neemias Queta, Nerlens Noel and Skal Labissiere vying for roster spots and a role in Sacramento. McGee will bring championship experience and a defensive presence that will be tough to match.

McGee, 35, is a 15-year veteran with three NBA championships. The 7-foot-tall, 270-pound center won titles with the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018 and another with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020. He also won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

McGee came out of Nevada as the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft. He has posted career averages of 7.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 16.6 minutes per game.

McGee spent four seasons with the Washington Wizards and four seasons with the Denver Nuggets before bouncing around the league over the past several years. He had a series of one-year, two-year and shorter stints with the Philadelphia 76ers, Dallas Mavericks, Warriors, Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Nuggets and Phoenix Suns.

McGee averaged just 4.4 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 42 games for the Mavericks last season, but he isn’t far removed from his 2021-22 campaign with Phoenix, where he averaged 9.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 74 games for the Suns.

McGee’s mother, Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer and fellow Olympic gold medalist Pamela McGee, came to Sacramento as the No. 2 pick in the 1997 WNBA draft. She averaged 10.6 points and 4.4 rebounds as a rookie during the WNBA’s inaugural season before being traded to the Los Angeles Sparks. She won a gold medal with Team USA at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.