Kings create Lithuanian connection in lineup with Wizards trade

Sacramento sent two first-round picks and second-year guard Sidy Cissoko to the Washington Wizards to get the 32-year-old Jonas Valanciunas, who becomes the backup to fellow Lithuanian big man Domantas Sabonis. 

The two played together on the national team at the 2022 EuroBasket tournament, where Valanciunas was the leading scorer and rebounder and Sabonis was third and second in those categories. 

The Kings are reloading, not rebuilding, after the trade that sent De'Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs. Cissoko was part of that return, along with a number of picks, which the Kings almost immediately flipped to beef up their frontcourt.

Valanciunas gives the Kings more options at the center position, where they've been using 6-foot-9 forward Trey Lyles as the backup to Sabonis, or 7-footer Alex Len. 

Their new center has tremendous size, a nice scoring touch inside and is a 34% three-point shooter, though he's shooting under 26% this season. Perhaps that was the result of a season spent on the shooting-challenged Wizards.

He may not be a good fit alongside Sabonis except for a few minutes per game, but the price was right for perhaps the best backup center available. Valanciunas is on a reasonable three-year, $30M contract where the third year is non-guaranteed. It's a low-risk, high-reward move.

Plus, they've got a veteran with playoff experience that Sabonis is very familiar with from international play. Coupled with DeRozan and LaVine's comfort level after three years together on the Bulls, the Kings might not have to wait for team chemistry, even with so many new players.

And if there's a significant contingent of Lithuanian fans in the Sacramento area, they are going to be thrilled. If this combo works out, the Golden1 Center may have to start serving cepelinai and borscht.