The Sacramento Kings are in the midst of an offseason where nothing should be off the table, including trading a fan favorite and young guard in a drastic trade to reshape the roster. If they want to both reshape the roster and bring in youth, length, and athleticism, it's going to take risky moves to find young talent that fits that bill
I will once again start this article with the fact that I don't love the idea of the Kings trading Malik Monk, but he's one of, if not their best trade assets this offseason, and could net the biggest return in any potential swap.
And in this hypothetical, Monk would bring back not only a young wing, but would also get the Kings back into the first-round of this years draft.
Sacramento Kings Receive: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Tristan Da Silva, ORL 2025 #16 Pick
Orlando Magic: Malik Monk, Devin Carter
The Magic are coming off an impressive season where they battled through injuries to finish with 41 wins, but faltered in the first round of the playoffs, falling in five games to the Boston Celtics.
One of the Magic's biggest issues is that they lack a true creator around Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. They boasted the league's second-best defense last season, but the fourth-worst offense. Bringing in Monk should help balance out the Magic and give them not only another scorer but also a facilitator.
They could also bring in Devin Carter to be a potential Cole Anthony replacement should they choose to move Anthony in a follow-up trade. With a defensive motor, Carter could slot in well to the Magic's scheme on that side of the ball.
For the Kings, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is the current bigger name and salary in the deal, but the real prize of this swap would be Tristan Da Silva and the first round pick.
Last season Tristan Da Silva became just the 6th rookie in franchise history to hit over 80 3 point makes & he played over 300 minutes less than any of the 5 ahead of him.
— MagicPlayerHistory (@orlmagichistory) June 8, 2025
Da Silva went 5-7 in Toronto, a win in which he set his current career high in points (25).#MakeItMagic pic.twitter.com/7L4TPNVgJM
Standing at 6-foot-8 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan, Da Silva is the exact type of player the Kings need to be trying to collect this offseason. Just like Carter, he'll be entering his second season in the NBA, but he started 38 games last season for Orlando.
The former 18th overall pick averaged 7.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists on 41.2% from the field and 33.5% from beyond the arc last season. The numbers don't jump off the page, but he fits the prototype of an athletic wing that the Kings need to pair with Keegan Murray.
To make matters better for the Kings, Da Silva just turned 24 and has three more years on his contract before hitting unrestricted free agency.
And while the Kings can give Da Silva time to develop, Caldwell-Pope would give the Kings another starting-caliber player to replace Monk. Caldwell-Pope averaged 8.7 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.3 steals on 43.9% from the field and 34.2% from three.
It was a bit of a down year for the 12-year veteran, but he shot 40.6% over the previous four seasons from beyond the arc, and if the Kings don't want to commit to giving Caldwell-Pope heavy minutes all season, could look to trade him at the deadline to a contender or next offseason should he pick up his $21.6 million player option.
And lastly, for the pick. Da Silva has a lot of potential, and Caldwell-Pope is a proven veteran, but Monk is by far the best player involved in this deal. The Magic also have the #25 pick in this year's draft, or future picks, but it's likely they'd need to include some sort of draft compensation for Monk.
The Kings would move a young guard in Carter, but would also be getting back a pick that new GM Scott Perry can select himself should he not be as high on Carter as Monte McNair was.
It's an extremely risky move for both sides. The trade could backfire on the Kings if Da Silva doesn't continue to grow, or if Carter takes off in Orlando, but it could also backfire for the Magic with the inverse happening.
Malik Monk should only be involved in a deal that brings back a big position of need. Da Silva might not be the biggest name that the Kings could fetch for the fan favorite, but it's at least another option to consider as Sacramento continues their offseason overhaul.
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