Sacramento Kings back-up point guard and reliable shooter Jimmer Fredette has a breakout season this year but the Kings are still not happy on having him on their teams.
League sources told Yahoo Sports that the Kings and Fredette are finalizing a buyout agreement on his contract.
Fredette will soon have the opportunity to start fresh somewhere else after spending nearly three seasons essentially buried on the Kings bench.
Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Sacramento Fredette are finalizing a buyout agreement on his contract.
Fredette will be a free agent should he clear NBA waivers and has a right to select which team he wants to play considering his potentials especially his three-point shooting.
Before the trade deadline, the Kings entertained suitors for Fredette but were unable to find a destination for him.
Fredette had been one of college basketball’s most prolific scorers at BYU – scoring 2,599 points in his career – and earning consensus honors as college basketball’s player of the year in 2011.
The BYU standout was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. He was subsequently traded to the Sacramento Kings in a deal with Milwaukee and the Charlotte Bobcats involving John Salmons, Beno Udrih, Shaun Livingston, Corey Maggette, and Stephen Jackson.
During his rookie season, “Jimmermania” in Sacramento was felt immediately as he recharged the fan base. Sales of his jersey resulted in a 540 percent increase in Sacramento Kings merchandise sales, as his #7 Kings jersey sold out in stores in the Sacramento area, as well as on-line
Fredette’s Potential
Although Fredette’s playing time has been limited and diminished like clockwork since his rookie season, he’s proved to be a potent scorer when on the floor, which makes Sacramento’s decision slightly curious.
Ahead of the Feb. 20 trade deadline, Wojnarowski indicated the Kings were seeking minimal compensation for his services in any deal.
For a guy averaging 18.7 points on 47.5 percent shooting overall while knocking down 49.3 percent of his three-point attempts per 36 minutes, that’s a bargain. Fredette has long been criticized for his defense and the fact that he’s more of an undersized 2-guard than a point man, but you can’t teach that kind of efficient scoring.
Knicks Destination
Ahead of the Feb. 20 trade deadline, Wojnarowski indicated the Kings were seeking minimal compensation for his services in any deal.
For a guy averaging 18.7 points on 47.5 percent shooting overall while knocking down 49.3 percent of his three-point attempts per 36 minutes, that’s a bargain. Fredette has long been criticized for his defense and the fact that he’s more of an undersized 2-guard than a point man, but you can’t teach that kind of efficient scoring.
Knicks Destination
More likely than not, Sacramento’s inability to move him stems from this buyout agreement feeling inevitable. If teams were sensing Fredette could be had for nothing later, it eradicates the Kings’ ability to drum up trade interest, similar to the situation between Beno Udrih and the New York Knicks.
The Knicks might be interested in him after they waived back-up point guard and Metta World Peace. he could be a perfect fit in the Knicks because of his potent outside shooting that could ease the burden on Carmelo Anthony if Melo will be double teamed.
Fresh off ESPN.com’s report of Udrih’s departure, starting point guard Raymond Felton was arrested and charged with “second- and third-degree criminal possession of a firearm, which are felonies, and fourth-degree possession of a firearm, a misdemeanor,” according to ESPN New York’s Ian Begley. Iman Shumpert is also currently tending to a sprained MCL.
That leaves the Knicks thin on guards. Depending how Felton’s situation plays out, Toure’ Murry, who has barely played this season, and Pablo Prigioni, the 36-year-old sophomore out of Argentina, are New York’s only viable point guard options.
Standing at 6’2″, Fredette is more of a shooting guard trapped in a point guard’s body. Tasking him with running the offense for any stretch of time would be a risky move for a Knicks team still lusting after a playoff spot.
Fredette can play alongside Prigioni without the Knicks sacrificing any real size, though. Head coach Mike Woodson has grown fond of a Prigioni-Felton starting backcourt, so a Prigioni-Fredette dyad wouldn’t be much different—except that, unlike Felton, Fredette can shoot.
But it’s still very early in the process. Other, more stable teams could show interest in Fredette, who figures to be a valuable weapon for any squad in need of complementary scoring.
“So I can go out and see the interest in (me) and sort of choose where I want to go, so to say,” Fredette told Cowbell Kingdom’s James Ham on the prospect of exploring free agency this summer. “And go to a team that definitely wants me and it will be nice to go out there be able to see what’s going on.”
Sooner than expected, Fredette finds himself with that same opportunity—the ability to go somewhere he’s actually needed.
Fresh off ESPN.com’s report of Udrih’s departure, starting point guard Raymond Felton was arrested and charged with “second- and third-degree criminal possession of a firearm, which are felonies, and fourth-degree possession of a firearm, a misdemeanor,” according to ESPN New York’s Ian Begley. Iman Shumpert is also currently tending to a sprained MCL.
That leaves the Knicks thin on guards. Depending how Felton’s situation plays out, Toure’ Murry, who has barely played this season, and Pablo Prigioni, the 36-year-old sophomore out of Argentina, are New York’s only viable point guard options.
Standing at 6’2″, Fredette is more of a shooting guard trapped in a point guard’s body. Tasking him with running the offense for any stretch of time would be a risky move for a Knicks team still lusting after a playoff spot.
Fredette can play alongside Prigioni without the Knicks sacrificing any real size, though. Head coach Mike Woodson has grown fond of a Prigioni-Felton starting backcourt, so a Prigioni-Fredette dyad wouldn’t be much different—except that, unlike Felton, Fredette can shoot.
But it’s still very early in the process. Other, more stable teams could show interest in Fredette, who figures to be a valuable weapon for any squad in need of complementary scoring.
“So I can go out and see the interest in (me) and sort of choose where I want to go, so to say,” Fredette told Cowbell Kingdom’s James Ham on the prospect of exploring free agency this summer. “And go to a team that definitely wants me and it will be nice to go out there be able to see what’s going on.”
Sooner than expected, Fredette finds himself with that same opportunity—the ability to go somewhere he’s actually needed.
Will find out on what Fredette’s destination would be but it is already cleared that his contract would be buy out and we are only waiting for finalization.
— with reports from BleacherReport.com
