The Kings want Rudy Gay to stick around and exercise his player option after he cranked up his efficiency in Sacramento. Why this does, and doesn't make sense.
The Sacramento Kings acquired forward Rudy Gay from the Toronto Raptors in a surprising mid-season trade and are preparing to persuade him to exercise his $19.3 million player option to stay in Northern California through the 2014-15 season. The Kings are planning on sitting Gay down with Hall of Famers Chris Mullin and Mitch Ritchmond, as well as giving him a "digital" tour of the future Kings arena, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.
Gay's productivity and efficiency improved dramatically through 55 games with Sacramento. He averaged 20.1 points on 48.1 percent shooting while also dishing out 3.1 assists per games. All of those averages would be good for career-highs in his eight-year career.
Sacramento finished the season with the third-worst record in the Western Conference, winning just 28 games. The Kings haven't had a winning record since the 2005-06 season and have missed the playoffs for eight straight seasons.
This makes total sense for the Kings
Sacramento doesn't have endless cap space to throw at players this summer, but should have a good chunk they can spend. If the front office and coaching staff believes Gay really did turn a corner in his time with the Kings, it makes sense they'd want to keep an established veteran on the team.
It's an expensive option, sure, but there may not be many top-tier free agent opportunities this summer anyway. One more year with Gay playing at the efficient level he displayed is a pretty good option, and it's not a long-term commitment.
$19.3 million for one year seems like an easier choice to make than trying to figure out a multi-year deal that works for both sides. If his numbers drop they can cut their losses next summer, but it'd give them a full season to observe how he fits with their franchise.
The Kings have growing talent in Ben McLemore, DeMarcus Cousins and Isaiah Thomas, another top-10 pick on the way, and could use a steady hand to help guide the team through a brutal Western Conference.
Wait, what are you doing, Sacramento?
Hold your horses. Luring Rudy Gay into accepting a huge extra year on his contract is insane. Sure, he looked like a much more efficient player while in Sacramento, but it could simply be a case of a player on a potential contract year bumping up his value.
It's hard to dismiss the other 90 percent of Gay's time in the NBA. Is there even going to be a large market for Gay if he does opt out? Front offices are tip-toeing around their salary cap more than ever, and the Kings could re-sign him on a smaller contract if that's the case.
How much persuading will it take to accept $19.3 million, anyway?