When the Sacramento Kings infamously traded DeMarcus Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans before February's trade deadline, it signaled to the fans -- and the players -- that the franchise was entering full rebuilding mode.
Cousins had failed to lead the team to a playoff appearance in his first six seasons, and a looming massive extension meant it was decision time for the Kings' front office. In the trade, Sacramento acquired the Pelicans' 2017 first-round draft pick, and because they kept their own pick they now hold the No. 5 and No. 10 selections in the upcoming draft.
Rather than keep both picks, however, ESPN's Chad Ford reports that the Kings are exploring options to trade up so they can select point guard De'Aaron Fox, whom the Sacramento front office has apparently fallen in love with. From Ford:
Fox came in to work out with the Kings this week, and there is a strong impulse to get him. They think he's a nice complement to Buddy Hield and he would really ramp up the rebuilding of their culture. The problem is that Sacramento has become his floor, not his ceiling.
There's talk inside the organization about combining picks Nos. 5 and 10 to move up in the draft to secure Fox. If they found a taker, that would be a high price to pay to move up two to three spots.
Fox has been shooting up draft boards since he thoroughly dominated Lonzo Ball -- the point guard who had long been considered the second-best prospect in the draft -- in the NCAA Tournament game between Kentucky and UCLA.
The Kings are likely fearful that Fox won't be around at No. 5, so they could try to get up to the No. 2 or No. 3 spot, since it appears that Markelle Fultz will go first overall. Ironically enough, the Kings actually won the No. 3 pick in this draft lottery -- but Philadelphia exercised the pick swap it received from the Kings in the 2015 trade for Nik Stauskas.
Some might say it's crazy for a rebuilding franchise to trade two top-10 picks for a player that's not a surefire superstar, but if the Kings think he's their guy then they might as well go for him -- it's not like they're going to contend any time soon either way.
The problem is that the Kings have a catastrophic draft history since taking Cousins in 2010. Here's a look at their first-round picks since then.
| Draft Year | Pick | Player |
| 2016 | 13 (via trade) | Georgios Papagiannis |
| 2016 | 22 (via trade) | Malachi Richardson |
| 2016 | 28 (via trade) | Skal Labissiere |
| 2015 | 6 | Willie Cauley-Stein |
| 2014 | 8 | Nik Stauskas |
| 2013 | 7 | Ben McLemore |
| 2012 | 5 | Thomas Robinson |
| 2011 | 10 (via trade) | Jimmer Fredette |
The only drafted players remaining who have had somewhat of an impact are Ben McLemore, who has underwhelmed throughout his career, and Willie Cauley-Stein, who played well this season after the Cousins trade. Papagiannis and Labissiere showed promise in limited minutes toward the end of the season.
The Kings have desperately been looking for a point guard since dealing Isaiah Thomas to the Suns in a sign-and-trade back in 2014, and it appears they think Fox is the answer.
