The excitement around free agency has been rapidly rising over the last 24 hours, with rumors indicating that both James Harden and Kyrie Irving may be looking at new destinations for their futures.
As Irving and Harden try to maneuver themselves onto a new team, the Sacramento Kings have used their cap space to bring back veteran forward Harrison Barnes on a three-year, $54 million contract.
Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes – a key part of the franchise’s rise into Western Conference contention – has agreed on a new three-year, $54 million contract extension, his agent Jeff Schwartz of @Excelbasketball tells ESPN. pic.twitter.com/JCT4RUayt7
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 30, 2023
Barnes deserves the contract, with most teams on the market likely not offering him more than the non-tax mid-level exception. Instead of the $12.7 million he could have gotten somewhere else as a free agent, he has given the Kings a long-term commitment and will average a yearly salary of $18 million.
The 31-year-old averaged 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.6 assists last season as the Kings ended a 16-year playoff drought.
Will The Kings Be Using Cap Space For Major Moves?
On draft night, the Kings dumped Richaun Holmes’ contract on the Dallas Mavericks to open up over $30 million in space. While many assumed that open space would be used for pursuits of Kyle Kuzma and Draymond Green, it’s unclear whether either player will be joining them as free agents.
Draymond is widely expected to return to the Golden State Warriors to likely see out his career alongside Stephen Curry on the squad. But if there was any team that Green could make a move to, it’d be the Kings, as Green will not have to move across the country. He also has familiarity with head coach Mike Brown. He averaged 8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.8 assists last season.
Kuzma should be the primary target as a 27-year-old two-way forward who averaged 21.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists last season. While some other contenders will try and get their hands on Kuzma, it looks like the Kings can offer him the most money.
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