Rudy Gay Officially Opts Out

Although it had been previously reported, Rudy Gay has officially opted out of his player option for next season with the Sacramento Kings. Gay decides to leave a $14.3 million contract on the table despite rupturing his left Achilles tendon back in January. He indicated on his Instagram recently that he has been cleared to return to the court, as that had to factor into his decision to leave such a big contract on the table.

It felt inevitable, but Gay opting out of his contract Monday all but ended his tenure in Sacramento. The market for Gay this summer should be pretty strong, even coming off such a serious injury. He says that he's fully cleared for basketball activities so that will be a huge bright spot for interested teams around the league.

Rudy was already on his way out of Sacramento this year. If not for his season-ending injury, he would've been one of the top players available at the trade deadline. Following his injury, there was some who thought that he may opt in to avoid free agency, but luckily he made a speedy recovery.

Gay might've been the one who declined his player option, but his departure from the Kings is mutual. When the Kings traded DeMarcus Cousins this past season at the All-Star break, the franchise hit the reset button. The front office decided to completely change course on the season goal of getting the 8th seed, to begin a full-fledged rebuild. Despite having the best center in the league in Cousins, Kings General Manager Vlade Divac still planted the seeds for a rebuild in last year's draft when he selected center George Papagiannis and forward Skal Labissière. With Rudy Gay on the roster, the Kings are a better team. But the team's playoff chances look grim for next season with or without Gay.

Gay will be entering his 12th season in the league come October. Even though he played on good teams and put up impressive stats, he has only been apart of two playoff teams in his career, both coming in Memphis. He's at the point in his career when he doesn't want to be a part of a rebuilding project, he wants to play for a championship.

As for the future of the Kings, Rudy's departure leaves a massive hole at small forward. The team had major depth at the position to start the season with guys like Matt Barnes and Omri Casspi to go with Gay. But even after their respective midseason departures, the team still had guys like Anthony Tolliver and Tyreke Evans, but Tolliver has since been released and Tyreke is an unrestricted free agent.

The gaping holes at point guard and small forward make the Kings draft day targets obvious. The team will most likely target De'Aaron Fox with the fifth overall pick and will look to fill the hole at small forward at the tenth pick with the likes of Jayson Tatum, Jonathan Isaac, or Justin Jackson. The front office has fully committed to a rebuild. Rudy Gay's exit is just one small piece of the entire plan. I personally wish him the best and hope he joins a title contender where he can be the second or third option.

Fans should be very excited about the future of the Sacramento Kings. They finally have a solid foundation intact for the first time since Michael Malone was fired. The addition of Scott Perry to the front office was a great move for the organization. He brings his experience from around the league, along with his many contacts, to add to Vlade, Peja, and Ken Catanella. The team hasn't had a coach like Dave Joerger since Rick Adelman, who was the last to coach the Kings to a playoff appearance. Finally, the team has a great group of young players. Buddy Hield, Skal Labissière, Willie Cauley-Stein, and Malachi Richardson are four great reasons to be excited about his upcoming season. Not to mention two Top 10 picks from this loaded draft will be added to the fold next Thursday. The Sacramento Kings are finally back on the rise.