Sacramento Kings: Analyzing the team’s 3 biggest offseason questions
By Dalton Sell
3. Is Kent Bazemore a long-term fit?
As one of the youngest teams in the league, the Kings lacked veteran experience all season long. For a majority of the year, Trevor Ariza was one of two players over the age of thirty on the roster, the other being Nemanja Bjelica.
However, Ariza was traded mid-season to the Portland Trail Blazers in a deal centered around Kent Bazemore, an experienced veteran.
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At the time, the move appeared to be as if it were for salary relief purposes as the Kings took on Bazemore’s salary, around $19 million this season before he would become a free agent at season’s end.
The 30-year-old Bazemore impacted the team immediately as he provided a vital spark off the bench. Throughout 21 games, the veteran averaged 10.3 points per game on 42.6 percent field goal shooting and 38.6 percent shooting from behind the arc.
After having struggled with Portland for most of his tenure there, a fresh start in Sacramento seemingly revamped Bazemore as his impressive offensive play off the bench was a much-needed part of this late-season surge.
With everything he brought to the team, the Kings should undoubtedly look to re-sign Bazemore in free agency. At 30-years-old, Bazemore is the second oldest player on the team, and still has plenty he can provide to a team looking to contend.
Tie that in with veteran experience and leadership that can help round this young Sacramento team, Kent Bazemore should be back in a Kings jersey next season.