According to the Vertical, Rudy Gay (30) has opted out of his contract and will use his 2017 player option to become an unrestricted free agent. He has informed the Sacramento Kings that he’s not likely to return to the franchise. The Kings have been in trade talks with several teams, but according to league sources the Kings are asking for too much for the 10 year veteran.
The reason why the Kings are pushing so hard to trade Gay, is because they risk losing him for nothing if they wait too long. Gay has been a solid player in the league throughout his career, as he was once considered a franchise caliber player. The question that we have to ask now, is whether he’s an asset or liability?
During the 2015-2016 NBA season Gay put up solid number for the struggling Sacramento Kings, averaging 17.2 ppg, and 6.5 rpg. A player with Gay’s talent should be snatched up by a lot of NBA teams. The reason why many people might consider him a liability at this point in his career, is because he hasn’t been on a good NBA team since the Grizzlies days.
It’s easy for us to say he’s not a winner, while he’s on a bad team. But Gay has all of the tools to be a key contributor to a contender, or a team that is missing that one piece. His size, ability to score at an efficient rate (which he is shooting about 45% FG for his career), and his character are all good traits of a good basketball player. Yes he needs to work on his conditioning, and his defense, but he can improve that with the right coaching staff. Gay has been very unselfish throughout his career, and if he lands with the right team, expect to see a different Rudy Gay.
