Should The Kings Pay Keegan Murray?

Should The Kings Pay Keegan Murray?

And I think we’re going to start seeing more and more teams do that. So it’s a different scale obviously, but I think it’s a very similar conversation or it’s in the same vein of the conversation that we’re having and are going to continue having about Keegan Murray because Keegan Murray is a really really highle player. Mhm. He is a a really really highlevel 3 and D wing where you feel good about it when he’s taken a corner three and you feel good about it when he’s one-on-one against Steph Curry or Donovan Mitchell or whoever like you you feel that that type of player. But it’s easy to just go Yeah, just max him out then. Want to keep him around? You got to give him the max. That rookie scale max. Yeah. Yeah. Do it. But I think if you’re the Kings, you’re going, “Hey, man. We kind of think that you’re a 3 and D guy who’s not going to really develop as a as a ball handler, and we don’t really envision that role for you. You might envision that for yourself, but we don’t really envision you in that role. So, how about 23 a year?” 23 million a year. How about that? And I don’t know I don’t know if Keegan takes that. And I like that’s that’s the that’s the calculus that the Kings are are I think doing right now. Well, here’s the crazy thing, too. I mean, basically Keegan was drafted the year after Kaminga, right? So, Kaminga just finished his fourth season. No. Yes. Yeah. And Keegan is about to enter his fourth season. Yes. Right. Mhm. So, we’re we’re basically looking at two players that are in some way to in in similar situations where like the expectations before the first and second apron were, oh yeah, you’re just going to max that guy like he looks like a max a max rookie scale extension player. Yep. Now like the the dynamics in the NBA have changed so much where like again Kaminga is wants 25 to 30 million. That’s what the initial thing was. He wants 25 to 30 million. Now he just wants out of there. Now he’s willing to accept a threeyear 60 what was it? 63 21 a year. Uh yeah something like that uh from the Kings. He’s like oh you know I want that deal. I want that deal. It’s like, hey, where were you a couple of months ago when it was like, hey, you want a 4120 or or 4130? Like that that’s kind of off the table. And so I think the like just the economics of the NBA are are changing. They’re evolving so quickly in front of us that if you are a team who goes out and and does the De’Aran Fox deal, there’s almost no way that that deal works out for the Spurs. Like I in all honesty, like I’m not sure what you think, but that he’s as a 32 year old, De’ar Fox is gonna make $63 million. And is he a top five player in the league? Is he a top eight player in the league? And like, look, I I want Fox to get as much money as possible. Totally. But you’re still looking at that deal and people are like, “Oh, well, if that’s the case, you you can trade him.” It’s like, the hell you can. Yeah. The only way the only way you’re trading him is if he’s awesome like second team AllNNBA this year. Yes, you might be able to trade him, but you would only trade him if Dylan Harper is awesome and Stefan Castle are awesome and those guys all play the same position. So, if those two other guys are awesome, it probably means De’Aran Fox wasn’t. Yeah. And this is not a slight on dear Fox, but he’s a onetime all-star. Sure. And the onetime all-star, he wasn’t voted in. He was an injur replacement, right? and you’re paying him $63 million in four years. I mean, that is wild. And so, I think the economics of the league are changing. Good for Dear for getting his money now. Absolutely. But I I think he’s also in a situation where just their salary cap situation is pretty good for the next couple of years because again, when Fox falls off the books, that’s when Dylan Harper, you know, would have his contract, his next major contract. And even at that point, you’re not going to pay Fox uh, you know, whatever money on top of 63 million, another extension that pays him 70 to 80 over the next four years, uh, as he ages, you know, as he hits his 33, 34, 35, 36 season. That’s not going to happen. So, I think the dynamics are are shifting and changing so fast, but we’re seeing it right now with Kaminga. seeing it right now with Giddy and with Cam Thomas and with uh Quinton Grimes, but we’re also gonna I think we’re going to start seeing it. We saw with Jabari Smith Jr. who got a really nice extension, but a a 5year 121. Is that what it was? So, it’s like 24 million 23 million a year. Jabari Smith. Yeah. Yeah. Um so that’s where where he’s at. And then it’s like what exactly are you going to get for Keegan Murray? I think it’s going to be similar. I think it’s going to be maybe he makes a little bit more because Jabari Smith is playing on a on a team that has other players. Go ahead. So Jabari Smith was a five and 122. 122. Five and 122. And what’s that work out to? Um you know like I don’t know. I can’t do that off the top of my head. 24.4 24.4 that seems to me where it’s going to be more around what Keegan’s going to make. And you know, if it’s a 5125, okay, 25 million a year. And the reason why you’re going to pay that if you’re the Kings is number one, there’s potential for him to be to outplay that contract. Yeah. There’s also potential for you to move on from that contract at any time because it’s a reasonable contract for a player of his of his ilk. Right. And if he is, and this is this is where and it’s really difficult to have this conversation because when you say the Hawks shouldn’t pay Trey Young, it’s the Hawks shouldn’t give Trey Young $60 million a yearish. Yeah, that’s my take. I would gladly take Trey Young on my team. Probably not at that price. No. Because of the financial landscape of the league, it’s forcing teams to re-evaluate how they evaluate talent and how they pay that talent. So with Keegan specifically, if you’re paying Keegan Murray $24 million a year, I feel really good about that because you just said there’s a chance he just outplays it. You’re going, man, that’s a good ass deal for Keegan Murray. But even if he doesn’t improve, 24.4 million for a guy who’s going to give you 12 to 15 points a night, he’s going to shoot 37ish% from three. So teams have to guard him and do you feel good about him guarding one through four on the opposing team? Mhm. And Joic at 24 and apparently Nicola Joic at 24.4 million for a starter who’s playing highquality defense who is not a negative offensively. Mhm. And in some ways is a plus offensively. 24.4 million for that player is like okay that’s reasonable. Yeah. That’s a very that becomes a very now reasonable contract. Well, that and the reason why like that dollar figure, it’s the dollar figure that Caloozma has been in. It’s the Cam Johnson dollar figure. It’s a little bit lower than the John Collins dollar figure, but it’s a contract that you know that you can move that those contracts are movable every step of the way. and and so like he’s not gonna be an albatross on on your roster where like right now as of right now like I don’t consider Demar de Rozan as an albatross contract. It it’s a you know it’s a one-year deal at 24.5 million with a $10 million uh you know buyout for next season. You can pay him 25 and a half or you can give him 10 million bucks and and he won’t play for you, right? That’s a reasonable contract for a player who can go out and score 22 points a game. who doesn’t play great defense and is who is going to be 36 years old this season. Yep. That’s fine. But you look at Zack Lavine’s contract and there’s almost no way for Zack to live up to that contract. And I don’t begrudge him for having that contract. It’s something that someone else signed and it because he he deserved it at the moment that he got it. But it just makes it so prohibitive to build the team around him. Yeah. And that’s just reality. That’s not dogging Zack Lavine. That’s the reality of the situation. Well, yeah. And this is what, you know, at the end of last segment talked about this a little bit, but like look, if if you just traded De’Aran Fox to the Spurs last year and you did not involve the the Chicago Bulls, that means a you kept Kevin Herder in that trade. So, you have Kevin Herder’s $18 million expiring or $17.5 million expiring contract right now, right? You also would have taken back Zack Collins in that trade and you might have had to take back one more player. I can’t remember what it is that the Kings actually did get uh as far it was just it was just other stuff, right? In order for the Spurs to match salary, you would have taken on one one more of their players. So basically, it’s the reverse of the Chris Weber trade. So you remember Chris, the Kings traded Chris Weber to to the Philadelphia 76ers and in that trade they brought back Corus Williamson, they brought back Brian Skinner and they brought back Kenny Thomas and they broke his contract up into thirds, right? And so you now you can move these pieces a lot easier. Right now the Sacramento Kings are sitting here. If they had an $18 million player on an expiring contract, Jonathan Kamingo would have already been traded to the Sacramento Kings. Yep. I guarantee it. Mhm. Because the the fact is right now the Golden State Warriors don’t want to take on Malik Monk and three years of Malik Monk. Correct. Right. And and then you don’t have another player like that. And they would feel good about just just in case anybody’s wondering just to pause you real quick. The reason they would feel good about then going, “Okay, you can lose Moses Moody or you can lose Buddy Heel to take on that contract.” Yeah. Is because you’re going to flip that contract to fill that spot. Will that ideally and even in that situation, Kyle, there’s a good chance that they would say, “Okay, hey, we’ll take both of those guys. We’ll take a Zack Collins and we’ll take Kevin. They’re both expiring contracts. We’ll take both those guys off your books and we’ll give you Moses Moody in that deal because then they’re they now have roughly 36 37 million in expiring contracts and a first round pick and they can go out and they can trade that for whatever.” Right. Right. But the fact is that’s not how it went. That’s not what the Kings did. And that’s why the the Lavine contract, and again, this isn’t a dig on. It’s the contract. That’s the bad thing. I I don’t mind him as a player. I mean, he doesn’t play defense, and it’s tough to, you know, have a perfect backcourt pairing with him, but but if Zack Collins was making that was on RJ Barrett’s contract at 26.75 million. Yep. We’re not talking about Zack Lavine. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Zack Lavine was on that contract. Yeah. No, no, not at all. You said Zack Collins. That’s why I’m like, give Zack Zack Lavine. I’m like doing like advanced if Zack Collins was on a 26.75 million contract, then salute to him. I’m still punching him in the mouth. Well, yeah. I mean, I that’s the thing. Even if Zack if Zack Lavine was making 32 million it’s that extra 15 to 17 million that the Kings literally they can’t stomach right now right I mean even dear Fox if you don’t make the trade dear Fox’s contract was so much less than Zack Collins I mean Zack Lavine’s contract we’re talking $10 million less that 10 million is what we keep talking about that that you know like sort of moving piece that you don’t have and so it just really really hurts the Kings that they have a secondary guy who makes that much money or your highest paid player who now makes that much money even opposed to what what you know you would have played you would have paid uh Fox for this season. Yeah. It’s just that giant leap in contract is really really tough to maneuver. Yeah. I’m looking at Jaden McDaniel’s contract as a comp for Keegan Murray just as a player. They’re almost the exact same age. They’re like two weeks apart. Jaden McDaniels makes $26.2 million annually. I think he’s a little bit better defender than Keegan, but I think Keegan’s a little bit better offensive player. So, it kind of comes out in the wash. So, just to if you’re getting him at $24.4 million, I’d feel so good about that. Yeah. It’s there maxing him out where you start to go, “All right, well, you’re doing that. You’re need you’re you’re going to need to get more from Kagan.” Mhm. But to your point, I don’t think we’re I I I I don’t think we’re going to see a world where Keegan gets substantially worse. Even if even if you’re on and and you and I and Kenny have talked about this in previous handoffs, but even if you’re on Kenny’s side of the Keegan Murray thing where, hey, you know what, there’s not there’s not a lot of room to grow offensively. He can make more shots, but this version where he’s putting the ball on the deck and dribbling like ah, you know what, we’re just not there. That’s fine. At 24.4 24 million. That’s fine. You can be a 3 and D wing at 24 million and be an effective player that nobody ever worries about how much money you make. Yep. So that’s that’s where I kind of come down to and that’s why if in the current landscape, I think that’s where if I’m if I’m the Kings, I’m very very comfortable landing because I don’t think Keegan’s going to become a bad player. I think he’s too good. Yeah. But even if he doesn’t become substantially better at 24.4 4 million at the player he is right now. If he just stays stagnant for the next five years, n fine. Yeah, you would hope that he’s around 15 points per game, but yeah, stays stagnant right around that. Do you know what Jayen McDaniels averages? Uh 12 12.2. Yeah. LA two season before last 10 and a half. Yeah. Year before that 12.1, but he was second team all defense in 23 24. Yeah, I would I would definitely he can take a step he can take a leap offensively. Ke. Sure. Yeah. And if if if he does at 24.4 million, then you’re getting a bargain. If he doesn’t at 30 plus million, you got a little problem. Oh yeah. But anyways, we’ll continue talking about this. We have a 49ers game on Saturday that we’ll talk a little bit about during the handoff. That’s James Ham. I’m Kyle Madson. DLO and KC going to join us for the handoff next

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