A Kings fan favorite could soon be packing his bags.
Keon Ellis is drawing “serious interest” from around the NBA ahead of the Feb. 5 trade deadline, with about 10 teams in pursuit of the 26-year-old three-and-D guard, The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported in a column published Friday, citing league and team sources.
“A deal is almost certain to go down before the Feb. 5 deadline, if not much sooner,” Amick writes.
Sacramento is seeking a late first-round draft pick in a potential deal for Ellis, Amick reported, citing those same sources.
To the surprise of many, Ellis has been in and out of coach Doug Christie’s rotation this season. In 39 games, Ellis is averaging 5.3 points on 38.4 percent shooting, with 1.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 17.3 minutes played.
Kings general manager Scott Perry joined “Sactown Sports” last month to clear up any controversy surrounding Ellis.
“There is no difference in opinion on Keon Ellis,” Perry explained. “Doug has a great deal of respect for him. Actually, Doug knows Keon better than I do. He’s coached the kid for the last couple of years. I’m getting to know Keon with each practice, each game that moves forward.
” … He is a professional. He exemplifies the six pillars that you guys have heard me talk about when I talk about being competitive, tough, team-oriented, accountable, professional and disciplined. … We like Keon Ellis here.”
Ellis missed two consecutive games last week as he dealt with knee soreness, but he was available once again in Tuesday’s loss to the Miami Heat and Wednesday’s loss to the Toronto Raptors.
He was a DNP-CD (Did Not Play, Coach’s Decision) in both games.
Last summer, the Kings exercised their team option on Ellis, locking him in at a salary of $2.3 million for the 2025-26 season.
And now, a player they once took a chance on and proved himself as an NBA player might be on his way out of Sactown.
Download and follow The Deuce & Mo Podcast