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Report: Kings, Kosta Koufos Agree To 4-Year, $33 Million Deal

A day after locking up a pair of guards, the Sacramento Kings invested in their front court.

Center Kosta Koufos agreed to a $33 million, four-year contract with the Kings on Saturday night, a person with knowledge of the deal said.

The person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because contracts can't be completed until the NBA's moratorium on free agency ends Thursday, said the fourth year is a player option.

ESPN first reported the agreement.

Koufos played behind Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph in Memphis the past two seasons. In Sacramento, the 7-footer is another big man for a front court that includes All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins and sixth overall draft pick Willie Cauley-Stein.

Koufos has career averages of 5.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in seven seasons. He also has played for Utah, Minnesota and Denver - where he spent parts of three years under current Kings coach George Karl.

The deal is a sizeable commitment considering Koufos most likely will back up Cousins. But it's the price the Kings felt they had to pay in a market where the most coveted free agents go to teams with recent success.

Sacramento has missed the playoffs nine straight seasons and is still trying to come together under Karl, who took over at the All-Star break after Tyrone Corbin and Michael Malone were fired a few months apart. There also have been repeated reports of tension between Karl and Cousins - and Karl and owner Vivek Ranadive.

New basketball operations leader Vlade Divac has been left repairing relationships and the roster, with the latter beginning to take shape the past two days.

The Kings reached agreements with point guard Rajon Rondo and shooting guard Marco Belinelli on Friday. Rondo's deal is for one year and about $10 million, and Belinelli's contract is for $19 million and three years.

Those agreements followed a head-scratching start to the week for Divac and the Kings. They opened free agency by trading last year's first-round pick, Nik Stauskas, along with Jason Thompson and Carl Landry to Philadelphia to clear more than $16 million in salary cap space next season.

The Kings reportedly received the rights to two international players and a second-round pick in the deal, but also gave up a first-round pick in 2018 that is top-10 protected plus the right to swap first-round draft choices in 2016 and 2017.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press.

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