The Sacramento Kings could be forced to send small forward Rudy Gay to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Josh Smith and Jonas Jarebko in a blockbuster deal this coming season.
The Kings are loaded with young talents from top to bottom, thanks to a collection of lottery draft picks they acquired from years of tanking and deals with other cellar-dwelling teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves, who unloaded Derrick Williams last season.
DeMarcus Cousins is already an outstanding center in the league and he's expected to grow even better following his impressive stint with Team USA at the FIBA World Cup of Basketball. Unfortunately for Kings fans, Cousins' individual brilliance won't be enough to survive the carnage of a very competitive Western Conference battle.
Last year, the Kings came up with a midseason coup to get Rudy Gay from the Toronto Raptors. Despite his status as one of the most talented wingmen in the NBA, Gay hasn't figured out how to become a leader of a winning team.
The Grizzlies traded Gay to the Raptors in 2013, the same year the franchise reached the first ever Conference finals. The Raptors also made it to the postseason for the first time since 2008, and again the good times happened after trading Gay to the Kings.
Gay, who averaged 20.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 55 games with the Kings, is still attracting interest from several teams despite his unlikely reputation. Last offseason, the Pistons attempted to strike a deal for Gay, but the Raps demanded too much in exchange for the small forward. However, the Pistons may have a chance to get their hands on Gay, if the Kings continue pushing their pursuit for Josh Smith.
Gay is set to test the free-agency waters as an unrestricted free-agent at the end of next season and the possibility of the 28-year old wingman bolting out of Sacramento will become greater next summer.
On the other hand, Smith has one of the worst contracts in the league after signing a four-year, $54 million deal last summer. Because of this, Smith has been mentioned in several trade rumors. The Kings attempted to get Smith but their trade offer of Jason Terry and Derrick Williams were rejected right away by the Pistons, who obviously wanted more value in exchange for Smith.
According to Bleacher Report writer Dave Leonardis, the Kings might have a chance to hammer a deal with the Pistons for Smith, if they are willing to use Gay as trade bait. In return, the Kings would get Smith and another versatile forward Jonas Jarebko.
The Kings viewed Smith as an important recruiting piece to acquire Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, who will also hit the free-agency market next summer. Acquiring Smith would accomplish half of their mission of getting the All-Star playmaker and eventually reuniting the former Oak Hill teammates. Meanwhile, Gay could be a perfect complement to Stan Van Gundy's system which features shooters surrounding a dominant center in Andre Drummond.
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