Haywood isn't known for his offensive arsenal, recording one double-digit scoring season in nine years, but he's a 53% shooter who rarely steps outside of 10 feet from the basket. As such, Haywood would be well-suited alongside Landry and Thompson, who'd play to their strengths on the perimeter, while allowing Hawes to serve as a spread-the-floor backup.
Udonis Haslem: A Charles Oakley-esque enforcer, Haslem does "the dirty work" and impacts games outside of the box score. The 29-year-old also quietly put up the most efficient season of his career while coming off the bench for the Heat — 9.9 points (49% FG) and 8.1 rebounds in 29 minutes per game.
Although he's undersized for a power forward at 6'8", he plays hard one-on-one defense and ranked ninth at his position in defensive rebound rate (24.8) last year, two areas in which the Kings have glaring weaknesses. Re-signing Haslem is clearly not at the top of Miami's priority list this offseason, and he may end up being a prime, relatively affordable target for the Kings.
Jermaine O'Neal: While it may seem like a lifetime ago, O'Neal was putting up 20 points and 10 rebounds as recently as 2006-07 before being slowed down by injuries. While his dreadful playoff performance (4.2 points on 20% FG and a 2.4 PER) didn't help his free agent stock, he put up 13.6 points and 6.9 rebounds while shooting a career-high 53% from the field in 70 games during the regular season.
He also still averaged a respectable 1.4 blocks per game, which would've lead the Kings, and played stellar interior defense. It's debatable whether the 31-year-old O'Neal would be a sizable upgrade over the Kings' current crop of bigmen, but if he were to accept a short-term contract, he could provide a low-risk, efficient compliment to Tyreke Evans on both ends of the floor.
Tyson Chandler (Early Termination Option): Still only 27, Chandler has shown that he has the skills to be a legitimate defensive center without being an offensive liability — 11.8 points (62% FG), 11.7 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks with New Orleans in 2007-08. Athletic and mobile for a seven-footer, he's been one of the league's best finishers around the basket (playing alongside Chris Paul tends to helps).
Unfortunately, Chandler has also battled a variety of nagging toe, hip, and elbow injuries over the last two years, and was limited to only 22.8 minutes in 51 games last year with the Charlotte Bobcats. If he decides to opt out of the final year of his contract, in which he's owed a hefty $12.75 million, he'd be a high-risk, but potentially high-reward option to anchor the Kings in the middle.
Article comments
1 - Matthew T. Sussman
Looks like David Lee can't believe what you just said about him.
2 - Alex Kramers
Ha, I'd have the same reaction if someone basically called me an overpaid Clarence Weatherspoon...
3 - John Gyro
This has to be one of the worst free agent list I've seen. With the exception of David Lee, getting any of these guys would probably just put Kings in a worst spot then they are now.
4 - Alex Kramers
Let's face it, John -- no player the Kings have a shot at signing will suddenly transform them into a 50-win team. Lee is solid, but too one-dimensional for the kind of money he'd demand. He's certainly the best player on the list, but wouldn't be enough of a real difference-maker either.
As for the other guys, they're more realistic targets along the lines of the signings Sacramento has done in the past. The Kings desperately need a big man who rebounds and defends, which is why most of these players, who'd be relatively affordable, would help the team without clogging up cap space for the foreseeable future.
The Kings aren't in a bad spot, per se -- they have a longterm rebuilding plan, and depending on what happens in the Draft, will likely sign one or two veteran players to round out a promising roster.