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The Sacramento Kings were never in serious contention to land Ben Simmons after they refused to part with two players, writes The Athletic’s Sam Amick.
The report suggests that while the Kings had been discussed as in contention for the disgruntled Philadelphia 76ers star, they stood firm on not including guards De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton in any deal.
According to a source with knowledge of their situation, the Kings spoke to the Sixers weeks ago and made it clear that neither De’Aaron Fox nor Tyrese Haliburton would not be included in a possible Simmons deal. That stance, the source said, has not and will not change and the internal expectation is that the core of their roster will remain the same heading into training camp later this month. There are no current conversations between the two teams and, barring a drastic change in demands, it appears the Kings are an unlikely landing spot for Simmons.
Amick suggests the Kings’ offer would have been based around Buddy Hield and Marvin Bagley III.
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