With focus on future, Spurs trade Tony Parker to Sacremento Kings.

Tony Parker is headed to Sacramento.

Rumor has it this decision took some soul-searching by the Spurs front office, but there was enough traction on Sacramento's end to make it happen. According to league sources, the Kings like the idea of having Tony Parker take on the role of mentor to its rising star point guard, De'Aaron Fox, whose performance so far this season has analysts pondering his chances of winning the Most Improved Player award at season's end. Like Tony Parker was in his prime, Fox is lighting quick and is evolving into quite the playmaker for his teammates on the court.

"I was ready to move on," Parker told the NBA world in the journal The Players Tribune in wake of the trade, having struggled to be effective as a third string point guard for San Antonio. Patty Mills continues to be clutch in big games, but Dejounte Murray is on the Australian's heels and even being assigned to starting role at times this season or left in when his play outshines that of Mills in a game.

Parker's salary also helped make the deal happen, and in return the Kings are sending big man project Skal Labissiere of Haitian descent, a charming second-year player with a nice jump shot. Over the summer, Labissiere revised his exercise regimen and improved his physique to better fend for himself in today's demanding NBA battleground. Also heading to San Antonio is a prospect that has lost some shimmer over the years but still has the potential to be effective given the right situation in Ben McLemore (whose salary matched Parker's), a lottery pick once compared to the famous Ray Allen, whose career hasn't materialized yet during his time as a rookie young player with the Kings then later with the Grizzlies before being traded back this summer to Sac-Town.

The Kings are also receiving a similar but younger shooter in Bryn Forbes, who's had his moments last year with the Spurs, but has mostly been underwhelming this season after the Spurs re-upped on his modest contract. With the addition of Avery Bradley and the consistent effort shown by Iman Shumpert, Forbes just hasn't gotten much playing time and has failed to find that elusive spark of rhythm as a result. The Spurs even sent him to the G-League affiliate earlier this season, to no avail. With Labissiere gone, the Kings can focus solely on lottery pick Marvin Bagley III's development and the Spurs have clearly doubled down on Dejounte Murray.