The Sacramento Kings seem to have interest in just about everyone that is left on the free agent market. The latest player they are reportedly interested in is Matt Bonner, the longtime San Antonio Spur, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein also reports that a return to the Spurs is still a possibility for the 35-year-old forward.
Bonner has played the last nine seasons of his career in San Antonio and has been a part of two NBA Championship teams. It appears that he has his choice of whether he wants to stay with San Antonio or move on to Sacramento, and it's definitely a tough decision for him. He has only ever played for two teams in his career (Toronto for two years before being traded to the Spurs), and he may really want to stay where he's comfortable in San Antonio.
The biggest question for Bonner is if he wants to get some playing time and join a new organization or stay where he's been and barely ever play. The Spurs are stacked in the front court after having a huge offseason with newly signed LaMarcus Aldridge and David West joining returning Tim Duncan and Boris Diaw. Re-signing with the Spurs would make Bonner the fifth big guy, and that would likely limit his minutes big time.
The Kings, on the other hand, aren't as stacked in the frontcourt. Besides having DeMarcus Cousins, they have Kosta Koufos and Willie Cauley-Stein. All three of those guys are centers who like to work close to the rim, and adding Bonner would bring another dimension to their frontcourt.
It has to be a tough decision for Bonner to make as he has been in San Antonio for so long, but his playing time has really gone down in recent years. In his last three seasons Bonner has averaged less than 14 minutes per game.
While Bonner is no longer needed in San Antonio, he does still have value as he can still knock down the three with regularity. For his career he shoots 41 percent from beyond the arc, and although last season he shot his second worst percentage of his career, 37 percent is more than acceptable as a three-point percentage.
Bonner has been part of a winning culture for so long that it may be hard for people to see him choosing the Kings over the Spurs, but it may not be that far-fetched for a couple of reasons. The first reason is the Kings should be much better this year with the addition of Rajon Rondo, and the other reason is that Bonner probably still thinks he can play and knows that there isn't going to be much playing time with the Spurs unless there are injuries.
