Harrison Barnes Dubbed the Most Likely King To Be Traded

Last off-season, the Sacramento Kings re-signed free agent Harrison Barnes to a three-year deal worth $54 million, despite seeing a decrease in production from prior years. This decision did not pay off for Sacramento, as Barnes continued to decline, having his worst season in nine years.

Many Kings fans have been calling for GM Monte McNair and the Sacramento front office to make a move to upgrade their power forward position, but between last summer and this year's trade deadline, nothing happened. After a disappointing 2023-24 season that resulted in the Kings missing the playoffs, they might have no choice but to explore various trades.

Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report gave one player from every NBA team that is most likely to hit the trade block this summer, and the Kings is none other than Harrison Barnes.

"Outside of De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis and Keegan Murray, no player should feel safe in Sacramento after the Kings failed to reach the playoffs," Swartz writes. "Harrison Barnes has been a steady starter in Sacramento for the last five-and-a-half years, but he may be more valuable as a salary-match in a potential trade. The 31-year-old is owed $18 million next season and $19 million in 2025-26. The Kings seem hungry for another star after sniffing around a Pascal Siakam deal before the deadline. Packaging Barnes and Kevin Huerter together would result in $34.8 million worth of salary, enough to make some competitive offers with draft picks thrown in."

Barnes' value around the league is unknown, but after averaging just 12.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, he may not be a hot commodity. If the Kings were to look to trade for a star-caliber player, Barnes would likely be on the move, but with their limited assets, star sophomore Keegan Murray would be talked about as well.

Most Kings fans want them to make a substantial move this summer, and while trading Barnes is a risk many are willing to take, it will take more than a struggling veteran forward to get any deal done.

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