Kings eye Mitchell Robinson, Sabonis

The Sacramento Kings have been linked to New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson ahead of free agency, according to a report aggregated by Yardbarker on May 16. The report cited New York Post reporter Stefan Bondy as saying league sources view Sacramento as “a threat” to sign Robinson. The possibility matters because Sacramento already has Domantas Sabonis on a long-term deal and two young centers, Maxime Raynaud and Dylan Cardwell, on its roster. No trade involving Sabonis or agreement with Robinson has been announced by the Kings or the Knicks. ### Where did the Robinson link come from? Yardbarker’s May 16 item republished a Sacramento Kings on SI story that pointed to Bondy’s reporting on the Knicks. That item said “sources around the league” have pegged Sacramento as a threat to pry Robinson away in free agency and tied the connection to Kings general manager Scott Perry, who previously worked in New York’s front office when Robinson was drafted in 2018. (yardbarker.com) Scott Perry has run Sacramento’s front office since the Kings named him general manager on April 21, 2025. The Kings’ official release said Perry would oversee basketball operations, giving him control over the roster decisions now being debated around Robinson and Sabonis. ### Why does Sabonis come up in the same conversation? (yardbarker.com) Domantas Sabonis comes up because his contract is the largest center-related salary on Sacramento’s books. Spotrac lists Sabonis at a $45.472 million cap hit for 2026-27 and $48.608 million for 2027-28, with free agency scheduled for 2028. Any move to add another veteran center would sit alongside that salary structure unless Sacramento moved money elsewhere. (nba.com) Keith Smith of Spotrac wrote on April 7 that Sacramento projected to enter the summer with negative cap space and around the first apron, with “cleaning up the cap sheet” a primary offseason goal. That was Smith’s analysis, not a statement from the team, but it explains why outside reports have connected potential roster changes to larger salary decisions. (spotrac.com) ### How crowded is Sacramento’s frontcourt already? The Kings’ current roster page lists Sabonis, Raynaud, Cardwell and Drew Eubanks among the frontcourt options under contract or on the roster page as of May 18. Raynaud, a 7-foot-1 rookie center, was selected with the 42nd pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and later signed by Sacramento on July 3, 2025. Cardwell is also listed as a center on the team roster. (spotrac.com) That existing depth is why outside commentary has framed a Robinson pursuit as potentially connected to another move. The Yardbarker-linked piece itself argued that adding Robinson without moving Sabonis would leave Sacramento heavy at center, but that interpretation came from the report and not from a public Kings statement. (nba.com) ### What has Sacramento actually said publicly? The Kings have not publicly announced interest in Robinson or said Sabonis is available in trade talks. Sacramento’s official releases confirm Perry’s role, Doug Christie’s status as head coach and the club’s current roster makeup, but they do not confirm the specific scenario described in the May 16 report. (yardbarker.com) The Knicks also have not publicly announced Robinson’s departure. The current reporting is best understood as league-sourced offseason chatter around a possible free-agent target and a possible salary-clearing path, rather than a completed transaction. ### What should readers watch next? (nba.com) The next concrete checkpoints are the June 25-26 NBA draft and the opening of free agency after the season calendar turns. Sacramento controls the No. 7 draft pick, according to Spotrac’s April 7 offseason preview, and any Kings move involving Sabonis, Robinson or frontcourt depth would likely become clearer as draft week and free-agency negotiations approach. (spotrac.com) (yardbarker.com)