Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan has reportedly set his sights on playing elsewhere during the 2026-27 NBA season.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Kelly Iko, DeRozan is “hoping to expedite his exit” from the Kings this offseason through a trade or waiver “sooner rather than later.”
DeRozan reportedly expects to be waived, a “similar sentiment shared by rival executives.”
The 36-year-old veteran is heading into his 18th NBA season after spending the last two campaigns in Sacramento.
While DeRozan’s 18.4 points per game last season marked his lowest scoring average since the 2012-13 season, he is still a very productive player considering where he is in his career.
In addition to his 18.4 points, DeRozan had 4.1 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 49.7 percent from the field.
On top of that, the very durable DeRozan played in 77 games, marking the fifth straight season in which he played at least 74 games.
A six-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA player, DeRozan previously played for the Toronto Raptors, San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls.
From 2013-14 to 2024-25, DeRozan averaged 20 or more points per game for 12 straight seasons and has a career average of 21.1 points per contest in 1,264 games played.
DeRozan is a model of consistency, and while he’s more of a third-string option at this point in his career than a first or second option on a good team, he still has a lot to offer a potential contender.
The Kings are currently in no position to compete for a championship or even a playoff spot, having missed the playoffs in each of the last three seasons and 19 of the last 20.
Sacramento went 22-60 last season, the team’s worst record since the 2008-09 season.
As a result, rumors and speculation swirled regarding the Kings leaving some of their best veteran players, including DeRozan, Domantas Sabonis and Zach LaVine.
If the Kings want to retool and build around younger players like Darius Acuff Jr., Maxime Reynaud and Keegan Murray, then moving on from veterans makes sense, and DeRozan could possibly be the first big piece to go down.