Sacramento Kings: Bogdan Bogdanovic’s extension could become a problem

The Sacramento Kings want to re-sign shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic before he hits restricted free agency but his indecision could create issues down the line.

The Sacramento Kings may be less than a week away from the start of their 2019-20 season, but important financial decisions are still being discussed. One of which revolves around third-year shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic.

While much of the discussion around contract extensions has involved rising star Buddy Hield, Bogdanovic’s contract has gone a little under the radar. But make no mistake about it, this isn’t an issue that’s going away any time soon.

Bogdanovic was originally drafted in the back-end of the first round back in 2014 by the Phoenix Suns. He would spend a few more seasons playing overseas in Turkey before his rights were traded to Sacramento as part of the deal involving Marquese Chriss.

The Serbian rookie would make his debut with the Kings nearly two years ago to the day and would go on to earn NBA All-Rookie Second Team honors after a solid rookie campaign.

In his sophomore season, Bogdanovic was relegated more to a bench contributor role but it wasn’t exactly a demotion. The 27-year-old still averaged just under 28 minutes per game serving as the team’s second unit leader and subsequent sixth man.

And entering the upcoming season, the Kings expect him to do that once again.

Bogdanovic is part of a very talented young core of players that the Kings have assembled. Along with players like De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, and Marvin Bagley, the Kings hope that Bogdanovic and their young core could help the team end their 13-year playoff drought.

However, another challenge will be keeping the core together past this season. Both Hield and Bogdanovic are set to be restricted free agents this summer in what is expected to be a very weak crop of free agents.

Hield’s contract situation remains more imminent as the deadline for an extension is October 21st while Bogdanovic’s isn’t until June 30th. But that doesn’t mean that the Kings should wait around with Bogdanovic.

It is in the franchise’s best interest to get an extension done as soon as possible so as to avoid his value possibly skyrocketing come June. The Kings reportedly offered Bogdanovic a four-year, $50 million extension but the Serbian wing turned the offer down.

Unfortunately, the maximum extension that Bogdanovic is eligible for is roughly four years, $51.4 million meaning that there isn’t much more the Kings could do on their end.

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But from Bogdanovic’s perspective, waiting makes all the sense in the world.

In a weak crop of free agents, Bogdanovic could become one of the more sought after names on the market. And free agency already has a tendency to inflate players’ values regardless.

The Kings are running into that same issue with Hield whose contract demands are based on his anticipated value in free agency. And for a small-market team like the Kings, overpaying is often the only solution to acquiring — or in this case retaining —talented players.

And that’s just what the team might have to do this summer if Bogdanovic waits things out — which he more than likely will. But as always, it’s a case of “buyer beware” when it comes to free agency.

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While Bogdanovic is an important piece of the puzzle, he’s not as important as some others. Hield is a crucial part of the Kings’ success on offense and the team still has to worry about future extension for both Fox and Bagley in 2020 and 2021 respectively.

And after handing out a hefty contract to Harrison Barnes in the offseason, the team could ill-afford to be throwing around excessive amounts of money.

They likely won’t get him for $50 million, but the question then becomes how much more than that is he worth? Or rather, how much more are they willing to spend?

That’s the question that will need to be answered in the coming months assuming Bogdanovic doesn’t decide to re-sign with the team during the season.

Bogdanovic remains a key piece of this young Sacramento Kings core. But they may be forced to make a difficult decision regarding his future this summer — and it likely isn’t going to be pretty.