Death, taxes, and the Sacramento Kings making bad trades \u2014 few things in life are fully guaranteed, but each of those can always be counted upon in their reliability. A couple nights of sleep have not removed the thought of just how badly the Cleveland Cavaliers got one over the Kings.<\/p>\n
Rob Pelinka watched two players who have been linked to the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> involved in the same trade. De’Andre Hunter is on his way to Sacramento. Keon Ellis is departing for Cleveland.<\/p>\n The Lakers should feel fine about missing out on Hunter<\/a>. That’s not the problem. However, watching Ellis be involved in that trade package after all the rumors leading up to the deal has to sting extraoridnarily.<\/p>\n Cleveland\u2019s savvy trade leaves Sacramento reeling and Lakers fans in disbelief<\/p>\n The Kings held the most in-demand 3-and-D player<\/a> on the trade market. There were talks about Ellis getting moved for a first-round pick. Scarcity created what should have been the perfect set of circumstances for Sacramento to get real value for their two-way guard. They blew it.<\/p>\n It comes as such a genuine surprise that all the Kings managed to secure for both Ellis and Dennis Schroder was Hunter. That feels especially puzzling considering what Jake Fischer had reported<\/a> about the value of the Cavaliers forward just a few days ago.<\/p>\n Fischer wrote, “Sources say that the Cavaliers, meanwhile, are engaged in various conversations on De’Andre Hunter, but many teams view his $20-plus million salary for next season as negative value when also factoring in his injury history.”<\/p>\n Apparently, the Kings are not one of the teams who looked at his contract and thought the same thing. That is unfortunately unsurprising.<\/p>\n Hunter was having a brutal campaign with the Cavaliers in 2025-26. His efficiency as a scorer had dipped mightily and his defense was downright atrocious. Cleveland should have been in a position where they were selling low on their struggling forward.<\/p>\n