Evaluating Whether the Sacramento Kings Should Re-Sign Doug McDermott for the 2025-26 Season
With the Sacramento Kings officially eliminated from the 2024-25 NBA season by the Dallas Mavericks, attention has now turned to offseason decisions.
Several players from this year’s roster are entering free agency, and in the coming days, we’ll be weighing the pros and cons of re-signing each one.
Doug McDermott joined the team just before the season started on a veteran minimum deal. But after a year with the Kings, has the sharpshooting veteran done enough to justify a return in 2025-26?
Is a Return for McDermott Justified?
McDermott was added shortly before the season tipped off, primarily for his elite three-point shooting (a career 43.6% from deep) and veteran presence. At the time, he seemed like a strategic depth piece—potentially insurance in case the Kings decided to move on from Kevin Huerter, which they eventually did in a blockbuster trade involving De’Aaron Fox and Zach LaVine.
However, McDermott never fully carved out a steady role in the rotation. While he maintained his elite shooting—hitting 43.6% of his 101 three-point attempts—he only played in 42 games and averaged just 8.1 minutes per contest.
The main issue? Defense. McDermott finished in the 21st percentile in Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus (per Dunks & Threes), marking the eleventh time in as many seasons that he’s landed in the bottom tier of that metric.
Given that the Kings ended the season ranked 23rd in team defense—and have now gone 22 straight seasons without cracking the top 10—they simply couldn’t afford to rely on another subpar defender in their lineup. This made it difficult for McDermott to maintain a consistent role.
As with Jae Crowder, it’s tough to quantify the leadership and experience McDermott may have contributed off the court. Perhaps those intangible benefits could justify another minimum contract.
But strictly judging by on-court performance, it’s hard to argue that the Kings should prioritize bringing him back. They may be better served finding a more impactful contributor at a similar cost.
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