2022 NBA Draft Recap: Sacramento Kings News & Reaction

Welcome to Sactown Sports‘ live feed of Sacramento Kings news and updates for the 2022 NBA Draft!

This feed will be updated with all of the latest Kings rumors, breaking news, and more as we dive into a very important day for this franchise and the city of Sacramento.

Thursday, June 23rd

8:33 pm PST: The Sacramento Kings traded the 37th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft to the Dallas Mavericks in return for two future second-round picks.

5:28 pm PST: The Sacramento Kings select Iowa’s Keegan Murray with the #4 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.

Live look from DOCO when Keegan Murray was announced.

Welcome to Sacramento. pic.twitter.com/1az0ClNl3M

— Carmichael Dave (@CarmichaelDave) June 24, 2022

4:13 pm PST: According to The Athletic’s David Aldridge, Sacramento’s asking price is considered “too prohibitive” for the Washington Wizards as they attempt to move up from 10th in the draft.

Sacramento is expecting a large return in any deal that involves the fourth-overall pick.

As of five minutes ago, there was nothing imminent cooking with the Wizards on the move-up-to-four front. The asking price has been too prohibitive for them, as it’s been for other teams looking to acquire Sacramento’s pick.

— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) June 23, 2022

1:30pm PST: Sacramento has announced the acquisition of Sasha Vezenkov, making the deal official.

Kings acquire first-team All Euroleague forward Sasha Vezenkov from Cleveland 👑

READ MORE 📝 | https://t.co/rhqklgOOrH pic.twitter.com/1pvenu6XEh

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) June 23, 2022

9:49 am PST: We have a trade!

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Sacramento Kings have traded the 49th pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft to the Cleveland Cavaliers in return for the rights to Bulgarian forward Sasha Vezenkov.

Cleveland is acquiring Sacramento's pick at 49 in tonight's NBA draft for the rights to Sasha Vezenkov, sources tell ESPN. Vezenkov, 26, was a first-team All-EuroLeague forward this season. He was the 57th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 23, 2022

Vezenkov is a 6’9 forward that can play shooting guard, small forward and power forward thanks to his solid frame.

Over 21 games for Olympiacos this season, Vezenkov is averaging 14.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 55 percent from the field and 37 percent from beyond the three-point stripe.

8:03 am PST: During an appearance on The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross, The Athletic’s Sam Amick gave an update on Sacramento’s pursuit of Hawks forward John Collins:

“As of last night, my sense on the Collins front was that the Kings were certainly trailing… the sense I got from the Atlanta side was the Kings were gonna need to put more on the table…”

The Athletic’s Sam Amick – June 23, 2022

NBA insider Marc Stein reported on Wednesday that Sacramento was offering forward Harrison Barnes in return for Collins. According to Amick, Atlanta was not impressed by the offer and is in the process of exchanging trade scenarios with several teams, including the San Antonio Spurs.

5:41 am PST: ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski dropped an early-morning Woj Bomb on Thursday to get this Draft day rolling before most of us woke up to have breakfast.

If Woj’s report holds and the top three picks go in some form of Smith, Holmgren, and Banchero, Kings general manager Monte McNair will have the opportunity to decide between Purdue’s Jaden Ivey–the consensus fourth-best player in the draft–or Iowa’s Keegan Murray, the player that is believed to be the organization’s current favorite for the selection.

As team boards finalize today, the 1-2-3 of the NBA Draft is increasingly firm, per sources: Jabari Smith to Orlando, Chet Holmgren to Oklahoma City and Paolo Banchero to Houston.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 23, 2022

Wednesday, June 22

9:10 pm PST: According to Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney, the Sacramento Kings are interested in acquiring Los Angeles Clippers sharpshooter Luke Kennard.

Kennard, 25, shot an impressive 45 percent from beyond the arc last season and averaged 11.9 points per game over 70 appearances. The Kings could look to swap Richaun Holmes in a deal for Kennard, as both players are currently on similar contracts in the $11-14 million range over the next three-to-four seasons.

5:55 pm PST: The John Collins-to-Sacramento train is picking up steam.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, Sacramento is offering forward Harrison Barnes in a deal that would send Collins to Northern California.

The proposed deal is one of Atlanta’s “prime” options, per Stein. With less than 24 hours to go until the draft, it’s expected that the Hawks will move Collins before the first overall pick is announced on Thursday night.

The Hawks are weighing a variety of scenarios as they pursue a John Collins trade in connection with Thursday's draft, with a deal headlined by Collins and Sacramento's Harrison Barnes among Atlanta's prime options, league sources say.

More of my latest: https://t.co/Yn653jeanI https://t.co/BrUbbcmsew

— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 23, 2022

4:05 pm PST: During an interview on Sactown Sports 1140’s Cattles & Ramie show, Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer stated that the Atlanta Hawks could move forward John Collins before the start of Thursday’s draft.

Fischer said on Wednesday that Sacramento seems to be “a viable landing spot” for the talented 24-year-old.

According to @JakeLFischer, John Collins could be moved before the draft on Thursday–even as soon as tonight 👀

Fischer joined @NickCRadio & @RamieIsTweeting this afternoon to discuss the possibility of Sacramento trading for Collins & much more:https://t.co/9goTBygq6k

— Sactown Sports 1140 (@Sactown1140) June 22, 2022

2:56 pm PST: The Detroit Pistons have traded forward Jerami Grant to the Portland Trail Blazers. Grant was a player that has been linked to Sacramento since February’s trade deadline.

Grant’s name will now be crossed off of Monte McNair’s list as the Kings will look to upgrade its roster in other ways.

Detroit has traded Jerami Grant to Portland for 2025 first-round pick via Milwaukee, sources tell ESPN.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 22, 2022

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