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In his Bleacher Report NBA insider updates, Jake Fischer revealed that the Sacramento Kings' asking price remains steep and is unwilling to be met by the Hornets and other teams for Sabonis. "Right now, there's going to be continued disconnect between the Kings wanting to get back positive value and draft compensation for Sabonis compared to other teams not so eager to give Sabonis the contract extension he's looking for," Fischer said. "I'm skeptical of this juncture how much market there were for Sabonis at the Kings’ current asking price. I don't think Charlotte is really motivated to meet that Kings' asking price."
Matt George: This is not true or accurate. The Sacramento Kings have not spoken with the Charlotte Hornets since weeks before the NBA Draft per a league source.
Following his major agency shift, the Lithuanian big man is eyeing a new contract and commitment with another NBA team outside Sacramento. "There's been some talk that Domantas Sabonis wants out of Sacramento himself, and that seems to be evident by the fact that he changed agents from Wasserman to CAA this summer," NBA insider Jake Fischer said on Bleacher Report. "He's extension-eligible. … In today's NBA, in this second-apron era, if you're up for an extension, you don't want to get to free agency, you want to secure that next bag from your incumbent team, or you want to get traded to the next team that is willing to do that."
NBA Trade Machine: Domantas Sabonis appeared in 4.0% of trades built on HoopsMatic over the past 24 hours. Of his trades, his most common destinations were Minnesota (15.4%), LA Clippers (11.5%), and Indiana (11.5%). The players traded for him most often were Anthony Edwards (13.5%), Darius Garland (9.6%), and Luka Doncic (7.7%).
Tyrese Haliburton: ‘And then I got another call, and it was like, now it was both of my agents, and they were like, and I was like, who is it? And then Woj on the phone. I don't know how he got like, cause I don't know how he was on the phone. He goes, I think it's Indiana. I'm like, who the [expletive] is Indiana? I'm like, I think it's Indiana. And I'm like, then I'm like, oh, after I process that Woj on the phone, I said, Indiana for who? Cause I didn't even know. And they were like, Sabonis. And I was like, oh, word.’
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Lithuania has announced a preliminary 14-man roster for the upcoming World Cup qualifying window in August, which notably excludes several of the team's stars. The most prominent absences include Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento Kings), Matas Buzelis (Chicago Bulls), Kasparas Jakucionis (Milwaukee Bucks), and Jonas Valanciunas (Zalgiris Kaunas).
The Kings nearly traded Domantas Sabonis to the Toronto Raptors at the deadline in February -- a move he would've welcomed, a source with knowledge of the situation said -- for a package that included RJ Barrett, but the Raptors were unable to get off the three-year, $84 million remaining on Jakob Poeltl's contract, which doomed the deal.
Sabonis had season-ending surgery on a partially torn meniscus later that month, and the Kings revisited trade talks surrounding him this summer. Perry visited with restricted free agent center Jalen Duren in early July and explored the idea of a sign-and-trade swap of big men, but the Detroit Pistons balked at the idea of losing Duren for Sabonis, league sources said.
Domantas Sabonis became extension-eligible in July, but offering a new contract isn't currently being explored, team sources said. He switched representation to CAA Sports last week. "He's going to play hard," Perry said. "I don't think he knows any other way to play. So regardless of what may or may not have been, when Domas locks in, he's going to come and compete. That's my expectation. We need the best version of him this year and for him to accomplish whatever goals and objectives he has as a player for the remainder of his career, he knows he's got to play."
So Domantas Sabonis -- with two years and $94 million remaining on his current contract -- returns to the Kings and, team sources said, has expressed a willingness to recommit and buy-in to this season's team. Acuff said Sabonis texted him a couple of days after he was drafted, welcomed him to the team and expressed excitement about their offensive potential together. "Sabonis is a great player," Acuff said. "An All-Star level player. Just to play with a guy like that, that'd be a blessing for sure."
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Sean Cunningham: Domantas Sabonis will be courtside in Vegas for today's Kings summer league game against the Wizards.
Meanwhile, Perry also is expecting Sabonis to play a big role in Sacramento’s rebuild following a disappointing 22-60 record during the 2025-26 season, despite previous reports that the Kings were in trade talks with the Charlotte Hornets involving the three-time NBA All-Star center. “Come in and compete just like everybody else,” Perry told reporters. “Obviously, he’s an excellent player. He’s done it for a while in this league. I’ve been in constant contact with him as well in the offseason. Just expect him to come in here healthy, first and foremost, and he’s trending in that direction. “Obviously, he missed a lot of last year because he was not. He’s always played hard, and so I expect him to do that. Provide some veteran presence for this team and really have a tremendous rebound year and help us build some winning habits here and start heading in the right direction.”
The Pistons have maintained their stance that they’re not interested in sign-and-trade scenarios for Jalen Duren and will continue to try to bridge the gap between both sides and get a deal done. Duren and Domantas Sabonis share the same agency, The Team. With Sabonis, 30, naturally looking to compete in the prime of his career instead of beginning a rebuild, and the Kings exploring the trade market for Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and DeMar DeRozan, it’s easy to see why this Duren sign-and-trade scenario would appeal to Sacramento. On paper, however, going from the 22-year-old Duren to the 30-year-old Sabonis, who’s owed $94.08 million over the next two years, isn’t prudent for Detroit.
Duren, as The Athletic has reported, is a restricted free agent who is taking meetings with the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings Tuesday with the hopes of finding a sign-and-trade pathway out of town. The gap in negotiations between Duren and the Pistons sparked this strategy, but it remains possible the two sides eventually strike a deal — especially considering the signals sent by the Pistons. Detroit does not have interest in the Kings’ scenario, which would send three-time All-Star Domantas Sabonis their way as a replacement for Duren, according to league sources who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe ongoing deliberations.
