Kings Surprisingly Meet With Top-10 NBA Draft Prospect

The Athletic’s Will Guillory reported that projected top ten pick Jeremiah Fears met with the Sacramento Kings early in the draft process. The Oklahoma product is a lock to be a lottery pick, so the Kings having a meeting with him likely means that they might consider looking into the cost to trade up. 

Of course, it is possible the Kings met with Fears before the lottery just in case they kept their pick, but with less than a 4% chance, it seems unlikely they (or Fears) would go through the effort. 

Whether the Kings do trade up or not, securing a meeting with a top ten prospect is a big deal and a good sign of things to come for Sacramento. 

Many fans will remember Scott Perry being a big part of the Kings being able to flip the script and bring in high-level prospects and free agents for meetings. Perry was also part of the Kings’ front office when they selected De’Aaron Fox fifth overall in 2017. Perry was named the GM of the New York Knicks soon after the draft, but not before he also helped the Kings bring in guys like Vince Carter, Zach Randolph, and George Hill. 

After a few years of the Kings not addressing roster needs, one can hope that Perry’s record and reputation will help the team make some noise this offseason, and that all starts with the draft. 

Like many top draft prospects, Fears is incredibly young and raw with massive upside. As a freshman with the Oklahoma Sooners, Fears averaged 17 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists per game while leading the Sooners to the NCAA tournament, where they lost to Connecticut in the first round. 

Despite being one of the youngest players in the NCAA, Fears had the highest usage rate of any freshman in the nation. Fears excelled at getting downhill all season and was great at getting himself to the line, where he shot 85%.

While Fears’ frame could be considered small, it’s very possible that he will continue to grow and bulk up in the NBA after skipping his senior year of high school and reclassifying to the class of 2024. As Oklahoma’s leading scorer, Fears showed flashes of top-five potential while also leading the team in steals and assists. Fears still has some room to develop and needs to, but he has the makings of a great lead guard for Sacramento after trading away De’Aaron Fox.

When you compare Fears and Fox, their skill sets and numbers are eerily similar coming out of college. Both excelled at getting downhill and scoring in the paint, led their teams in steals and assists, and struggled from outside. While Fox would likely be considered the more polished prospect, Fears has a chance to have a similar impact on the court. 

If Jeremiah is able to parlay his solid free-throw shooting into a consistent jumpshot, he could end up being even better than Fox. 

This all could be moot as the price to move up in the draft will likely be very steep; however, if Fears hits his potential, it could all be worth it for a Kings team in desperate need of a lead guard. I, for one, would be all for the Kings taking a shot on the Oklahoma product in June.