Kofi Inkoom
The Sacramento Kings are trading away Davion Mitchell and Sasha Vezenkov to the Toronto Raptors, while in return, the Raptors are sending Jalen McDaniels to the Kings, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Additionally, the Kings are including the 45th pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft in their trade package to the Raptors, Wojnarowski adds.
Mitchell, the ninth overall pick in the 2021 draft, had a solid rookie season averaging 11.5 points per game, but his standout skill is his defense.
Last season (2023/24), he played 72 games for the Kings, averaging 5.3 points and 1.9 assists in about 15.3 minutes per game, mostly coming off the bench.
Vezenkov, who was the EuroLeague MVP in 2022/23, was drafted 57th overall in 2017 but only joined the NBA last summer with the Kings on a three-year, $20 million deal.
His rookie NBA season was inconsistent, playing in 42 games and averaging 5.4 points and 2.3 rebounds in just 12.2 minutes per game. He shot 37.5% from three-point range.
Reports in June indicated that the Kings were considering trading Vezenkov due to financial concerns, especially after committing to a sizable contract for Malik Monk.
By swapping Vezenkov’s $6.66 million salary and Mitchell’s $6.45 million cap hit for Jalen McDaniels’ incoming $4.74 million salary, Sacramento aims to ease their financial burden, potentially avoiding the luxury tax as they head into free agency.