NBA Free Agency: Kings sign Kent Bazemore

The Sacramento Kings have made yet another move to help them in what will be an extremely critical season. According to a report from Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Kings have signed free-agent Kent Bazemore to a 1-year contract. This will be Bazemore’s second stint with the Kings.

Back in the 2019-20 season, Bazemore played in 25 games for Sacramento after being acquired from the Portland Trail Blazers in a trade. In those 25 games, Bazemore averaged 10.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game while shooting almost 42% from the field and 38.4% from three.

He provided some decent production off the bench in what was a hard season to watch as a Kings fan. Hopefully he can replicate some of that this season, although the 23.1 minutes per game he averaged that year will be drastically cut down.

Last season, Bazemore played on the Los Angeles Lakers and struggled along with the rest of his team. He averaged a career low 32.4% from the field while only playing in 39 games. Another career worst.

Now entering his 11th year in the NBA, the 33-year-old Bazemore will take on the role of the seasoned veteran. Much like recent signing Matthew Dellavedova, he has a lot more experience than the vast majority of the Kings current roster. However, one factor that makes Bazemore’s signing interesting is simply the fact that he’s played for Sacramento before.

He witnessed firsthand how a Sacramento season typically goes while playing alongside current Kings such as De’Aaron Fox, Harrison Barnes, Richaun Holmes, and Alex Len. His pre-existing chemistry with the aforementioned players and this fanbase will help him buy in quicker than most other free-agent signings and allow him to be the locker room vet this young core needs.

The Kings have their playmakers; Bazemore will help keep those guys in check and provide them with the knowledge one can only achieve through experience.