NBA free agent signings: George Hill to Kings for 3 years, $57 million, per report

George Hill was not left out in the free-agent point guard musical chairs dance after all. He’s agreed to a three-year, $57 million deal to join the Sacramento Kings, according to Yahoo! Sports’ Shams Charania. The third year is partially guaranteed, according to NBA.com’s David Aldridge.

The Kings also will be signing forward Zach Randolph to a two-year, $24 million deal, so they are bringing in multiple veterans to help their young core. This does take them out of the Otto Porter sweepstakes, since they no longer have enough cap space to offer the Wizards’ restricted free agent a maximum contract.

The 31-year-old Hill was expected to be one of the most desirable players on the market, but several of his top potential destinations went in different directions. He reportedly met with the Lakers to discuss a potential one-year deal, but the Kings’ multi-year offer was a far better arrangement.

Hill should be a nice fit alongside first-round pick De’Aaron Fox, whether it’s starting while Fox gets his feet wet or playing alongside him off the ball. The Kings are loaded with shooting guards, but Hill’s versatility, leadership, and strong spot-up shooting will still be helpful as the Kings begin their rebuilding effort.

What does Hill do well that can help the Kings?

Hill is a versatile combo guard that can handle the ball, but also spot up off it and defend bigger players. In Indiana, he ceded a lot of playmaking responsibility to Lance Stephenson and Paul George, but he proved in his lone year with the Jazz that he can be a solid scorer off the dribble as well. He averaged nearly 17 points per game with the Jazz last year while posting a true shooting percentage near 60 percent.

Hill takes good shots and converts them proficiently. He’s a career 38 percent three-point shooter than knocked down more than 40 percent of his triples in each of the last two years.

Hill is also one of the league’s top point guard defenders, thanks to his long arms and quick feet. He’s a little small to guard the bigger wings, but can also hold his own quite well against most shooting guards. That should allow the Kings to play him with rookie De’Aaron Fox in some lineups.

So why didn’t Hill get other offers?

That’s a good question, and something Hill’s representatives must be wondering. The Jazz attempted to sign him to an in-season contract extension that could have been worth up to $88 million over four years (including last year). Hill turned it down, thinking he could get a maximum contract this summer. He’s probably kicking himself now, since he had to settle for much less guaranteed money with a much worse team.

The market simply did not break the way Hill expected. The 76ers and Nets — two teams with a point guard opening and tons of money to spend — filled their voids via the draft (Markelle Fultz) and trade (D’Angelo Russell). The Spurs, Hill’s former team and an expected suitor, elected to re-sign Patty Mills instead. Minnesota went after Jeff Teague, while the Jazz made a trade for Ricky Rubio instead of giving the older Hill the money he wanted.

With few options left, Hill had to settle for the Kings’ offer instead of a one-year deal with the Lakers or a potential offer from Denver that was contingent on clearing cap space it didn’t have.

Perhaps teams were scared off by Hill’s age and injury history. He missed 33 regular-season games and the final three contests of Utah’s playoff run with a nagging toe injury. He will also turn 32 next May.

How does Hill fit in with the Kings?

Veteran ball-handling competence is underrated during a rebuild, particularly one centered around young big men. A player like Hill would have been incredibly valuable to the 76ers as they navigated through The Process, for example. The Kings are hoping Hill can keep the seat warm for Fox while helping Skal Labissiere, Willie Cauley-Stein, Georgios Papagiannis, and Harry Giles develop.

Many assumed the Kings were out of the market for a point guard upon drafting Fox, but Hill is a nice fit in that he can also play with Fox off the ball. The only downside there is fewer minutes for Sacramento’s army of young shooting guards, like Buddy Hield, Malachi Richardson, and Bogdan Bogdanovic, the latter of whom is expected to come over from Europe this year.