Sacramento Kings trade Davion Mitchell, Sasha Vezenkov to Toronto Raptors for Jalen McDaniels

Former Baylor star and Sacramento Kings guard Davion Mitchell has been traded following the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Wojnarowski tweeted Thursday that the Kings are dealing Mitchell and Sasha Vezenkov to Toronto in exchange for Jalen McDaniels. Here was that post: “The Raptors are sending Jalen McDaniels to the Kings in the deal, sources tell ESPN.”

In a second tweet, Wojnarowski added that the Kings are also sending the Raptors a second round pick for Thursday: “The Kings are sending the Raptors the 45th pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft as part of the trade, sources tell ESPN.”

Mitchell spent three years in Sacramento after the team took him with the ninth overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. However, with the 2017 Kentucky reunion tour starring De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk as guards, plus Kevin Huerter in the rotation, minutes were slim in the backcourt.

Then, on Wednesday, Sacramento drafted another guard, Providence’s Devin Carter, almost assuring that Mitchell’s opportunity with the Kings was up. Now, he’s been sent to a rebuilding Toronto squad that should have more minutes and room for error to provide Mitchell in what is a crucial final year of his rookie deal ahead of a possible new contract next summer.

Looking at the trade, this could be a play to trade in a rotation guard for a rotation wing for Sacramento, but more likely, it just looks like a cash dump with the price of a second-round pick. Mitchell and Sasha Vezenkov were set to occupy north of $13 million in cap space, and McDaniels is only at 4.7 million, saving Sacramento roughly $8 million with the trade.

For a contender to free up that much space in a wash of a player swap while still taking back a potential rotation piece is good business for Sacramento, especially after they drafted Devin Carter to take away minutes from Mitchell and Vezenkov anyway.

Now, the Kings are in great cap shape. Their top players — Domantas Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk, Kevin Huerter, Harrison Barnes — are all under contract next season and the team now has an extra $15 million to spend before they even reach the first luxury tax apron — and they can spend up to $26 million before hitting the second apron.

With that 15-26 million figure, expect Sacramento to aggressively pursue one extra starter or rotation piece that could push them to the next level in the Western Conference.

Contract and salary cap numbers all via Spotrac