The Sacramento Kings may be forced to part ways with center Domantas Sabonis based on a recent update.
The Sacramento Kings have made some changes this offseason as they saw guard DeMar DeRozan walk in free agency, as well as signing forward and center Ben Simmons in addition to drafting guard Darius Acuff Jr. in the 2026 NBA Draft.
While the Kings have already made the moves previously stated, they may not be done and could very well have to make a trade soon.
On that note, ESPN recently put out a piece talking about 2026 NBA buzz, which included center Domantas Sabonis and the fact that he may be on his way out of Sacramento.
Speaking of Sabonis, ESPN insider Brian Windhorst appeared on an episode of "The Hopp Collective" on September 1st and made a few remarks concerning the Kings' center, which suggests that Sacramento could be forced to make a trade at some point soon.
"I do think it's somewhat interesting that he changed agents this offseason. He hired Aaron Mintz of CAA. Steve Heumann and that group. One of the top executives at CAA. This last year, Mintz and his group executed the trade for Trae Young away from Atlanta, executed the trade for Walker Kessler away from the [Jazz]. Domantas Sabonis just hired him," Windhorst said.
Windhorst also added, "At the risk of ... parodying myself from the season, why would he do that?"
When looking at these remarks from Windhorst, it is very possible that Sabonis could be on his way out due to the fact that his new agent, Aaron Mintz of CAA, has navigated these types of situations before with players like Trae Young and Walker Kessler, who are both now in new situations as a result of trades made in the past year.
For Sabonis, his status with the Kings has been in question for a lot of the offseason with the possibility that he would be traded being floated around throughout the summer.
While Sabonis leaving Sacramento has been floated around by itself, that possibility seems to be getting more likely based on the Kings' interest in Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren, who appears to want a change of scenery as well.
With that in mind, if the Kings do acquire Duren that would more likely than not push Sabonis out of Sacramento.
The reason Sabonis would have to leave the Kings if they did acquire Duren is the fact that Sabonis and Duren are both starting-caliber centers, and one of them coming off the bench simply does not seem very likely.
In that scenario it is worth wondering if Sabonis would be traded to Detroit, or if he would be involved in a separate move. Regardless, a combination of Sabonis and Duren on the Kings roster just does not seem likely if the Pistons end up trading the center to Sacramento or if Duren simply signs with the Kings next offseason when he is a free agent.
So, as Sabonis and the Kings enter the 2026 season, it will be very interesting to monitor his situation to see if he stays as a part of the Kings or if there is a move made to acquire Duren, which forces Sabonis to leave Sacramento.
