Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie announced this afternoon they have signed rookies Jimmer Fredette, Tyler Honeycutt and Isaiah Thomas to contracts.
Terms of the deals were not disclosed, but it is believed that Fredette will make approximately $2 million in his first season with the Kings as broken down by the NBA's new collective bargaining agreement. He will likely make $2.3 million his second season with team options for his third and fourth seasons.
If you're going out to dinner tonight keep an eye out for a bunch of tall athletes doing the same. Before they start practice tomorrow, the Kings are going out to dinner as a team tonight. Let us know if you see them around town. And now that Jimmer Fredette has signed his first professional contract, let us know if he picks up the tab.
Fredette, a record-setting guard out of BYU, was the Kings' first-round pick and 10th overall in the NBA Draft.
Honeycutt (No. 35) of UCLA and Thomas (No. 60) who played at Washington, were second-round picks by the Kings.
Fredette was originally selected 10th by the Milwaukee Bucks before being traded as part of a three-team deal that sent guard Beno Udrih to Milwaukee and brought John Salmons back to the Kings.
Fredette was one of the more popular collegiate players last year, averaging 28.9 points as a senior for the BYU Cougars and was later named National Player of the Year.
While the Kings struggled at shooting from the perimeter early last season, Sacramento will have numerous sharp shooters to start the season.
Fredette, John Salmons and Marcus Thornton can all score from the outside. Tyreke Evans, the 2009-10 NBA Rookie of the Year, has also improved his outside jumper, but is most dangerous against opponents driving the lane.
"We think (Fredette) fit in really well with our roster," said Kings coach Paul Westphal on the night of the draft. "I hesitate to say until we get out there and get after it, but I think of him as a point guard. He plays the pick-and-roll really well. He's a good passer, obviously he's a great shooter."
As a sophomore at UCLA last season, Honeycutt averaged 12.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks and was a first-team All-Pacific-10 selection.
Thomas was the final draft pick. He averaged 16.4 points as a junior at Washington and was a first-team All-Pac 10 selection.
Training camps opened across the NBA on Friday but the Kings won't begin practice until Saturday at noon.
Jimmer Fredette
First round: No. 10
College: BYU
Position: Point guard
Height, weight: 6-2, 195
Age: 22
Fast fact: All-State wide receiver at Glen Falls (N.Y.) High School as a junior
2010-11 statistics: 28.9 points, 4.3 assists, 3.9 rebounds
Tyler Honeycutt
Second round: No. 35
College: UCLA
Position: Small forward
Height, weight: 6-8, 187
Age: 20
Fast fact: All-City volleyball player at Sylmar High School
2010-11 statistics: 12.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists
Isaiah Thomas
Second round: No. 60
College: Washington
Position: Point guard
Height, weight: 5-9, 185
Age: 22
Fast fact: Named after NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas after his father lost a bet on a Lakers-Pistons game
2010-11 statistics: 16.8 points, 6.1 assists, 3.9 rebounds
PHOTO CAPTION: Kings rookies Jimmer Fredette and Isaiah Thomas in a dance-off at the Goon Squad game halftime at the Pavilion at UC Davis. November 21, 2011. Jose Luis Villegas/Sacramento Bee
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