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Kings Deal G Devin Carter to Hawks, Escape Second Apron
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- Kings Deal G Devin Carter to Hawks, Escape Second Apron
Kings Deal G Devin Carter to Hawks, Escape Second Apron
(Darren Yamashita/Imagn Images)
In a salary-based move, the Sacramento Kings traded Devin Carter and a second-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks , shedding the former No. 13 overall pick's $5.2 million salary and moving the team below the second apron.
Sacramento will still have some salary dumping to do as starting shooting guard Zach LaVine picked up his hefty $49 million player option earlier today, but moving Carter is a good step in the right direction.
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Carter averaged 6.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists over his first two seasons with the Kings, struggling with inefficiency and finding consistent minutes.
The Kings selected Carter within the lottery in the 2024 in the wake of his Big East Player of the Year season at Providence.
Carter spent his freshman season at South Carolina, earning SEC All-Freshman Team honors before transferring to Providence for two seasons.
The 6-foot-2 combo guard made his first career start last season towards the end of last year, and did show flashes, taking advantage of his larger role.
Over a 3-game span in late March, Carter averaged 19.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.0 steals on stellar 52-46-83 shooting splits.
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Against the Indiana Pacers , Carter set off on his three-game heater, scoring a team-high 24 points in just sixteen minutes, providing instant offense off the bench. 22 of his 24 points came in the fourth quarter .
Sacramento (19-54) entered the fourth quarter trailing by double digits, but caught fire with Carter's performance, outscoring Indiana 42-27.
Carter was extremely efficient, making 9-of-13 shot attempts and knocking down 75%(3-4) of his 3-point attempts.
He followed up this explosion with back-to-back scoring outputs of 16 or more, knocking down another trifecta of 3-point attempts in his following appearance against the Charlotte Hornets .
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While Carter ended the season on this high note, it became more difficult to see a way for the Friar standout to find minutes next season after the Kings landed Darius Acuff Jr. with the No. 7 overall pick.
Acuff will take the reigns as the Kings' PG1 and main facilitator, while Russell Westbrook's future with the franchise remains unknown.
It is unfortunate that Carter becomes the latest Kings first rounder that did not live up to the hype, but his ability to heat up and control the ball will serve him well in Atlanta.
The Hawks are still seeking a post-Trae Young lead guard and will need supplementary pieces to support rookie point guard Kingston Flemings.
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