The Toronto Raptors and Sacramento Kings have officially swapped swingmen in a trade.
The Kings send Davion Mitchell, Sasha Vezenkov and the No. 45 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft to the Raptors for Jalen McDaniels in a deal that was finalized on Friday.
Mitchell is known for his defensive abilities on the perimeter while McDaniels has developed a similar reputation with the Raptors.
“This trade provides us with a mix of young and veteran players, as well as future flexibility and draft assets, as we continue our quest to win, and so we’re pleased to welcome Davion, Sasha and Jamal to the Raptors and to Toronto,” Raptors general manager Bobby Webster said in a team statement. “We thank Jalen for his contributions, and we wish him all the best in the future.”
A lottery pick in 2021, Mitchell has seen his role steadily decline in Sacramento. Last season, he averaged 5.3 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 15.3 minutes per game, a far cry from the 11.5 ppg, 2.2 spg and 4.2 apg he averaged in 27.7 mpg as a rookie.
However, Mitchell played strong after the All-Star break and was a key player for Sacramento, which made the Play-In Tournament. In 28 games after the All-Star break, Mitchell posted 7.4 ppg, 1.8 rpg and 2.1 apg in 18.6 minutes per game.
McDaniels signed a two-year deal with the Raptors last summer and appeared in 50 games, averaging 3.4 ppg and 1.6 rpg in 10.8 mpg. He struggled offensively, shooting 34.4% overall after averaging 45.5% in 2022-23. He saw his role increase after the All-Star break (14.3 mpg, 4.4 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 1.2 apg) but the Raptors were out of contention for the postseason by early March.
Vezenkov, a rookie in 2023-24, was the EuroLeague MVP in 2022-23 and signed a three-year deal with the Kings last summer. He appeared in 42 ga
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