SACRAMENTO - The agent for Willie Cauley-Stein isn’t getting his wish.
A week after Roger Montgomery told the Sacramento Bee that he did not want the Kings to extend his client a qualifying offer to prevent him from becoming an unrestricted free agent, Sacramento did just that.
According to a league source, speaking to ABC10 on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, the Kings extended the qualifying offer on Friday night, making him a restricted free agent.
As a restricted free agent, Cauley-Stein and his agent can sign an offer sheet with any other NBA team beginning at 3:00 p.m. PT on Sunday. However, Sacramento will have 48 hours following the signing of the offer sheet to decide if they would like to match whatever deal he reaches with that other team, keeping him as a member of the Kings.
Should they choose not to match the offer sheet, the 25-year-old Cauley-Stein will be able to leave the Kings for his new NBA home.
Last Friday, Montgomery told the Bee that his client needs a fresh start elsewhere.
“Based on how things have gone for him there in Sacramento, I just think it’s time for Willie to move on and we’d really like him to move on,” Montgomery said.
The Kings drafted Cauley-Stein out of Kentucky with the sixth overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He averaged career-highs with 12.8 points and pulling down 8.4 rebounds per game last season, where he started in all 81 games he appeared in.
Follow Sean Cunningham on Twitter: @SeanCunningham
