Well, That Was Fast: Beno Udrih Agrees to MLE Deal with Sacramento

It did not take long for the Sacramento Kings to lock up their point guard of the future (I'm not crowning him, but he will be there for the foreseeable portion of it), as Sam Amick is reporting that the Kings and Beno Udrih have agreed to a five year deal that will pay him $30 million.

The deal for the fifth-year point guard can officially be signed when the free agency moratorium lifts on July 8. According to numerous sources, Udrih received the full five-year deal for the entire midlevel exception (approximately $6 million per season).

"It's good for everybody," Cornstein said. "They've expressed tremendous interest not just starting at 12:01 last night New York time but really from the get go.

"They took a chance on Beno when he was really kind of an outcast from San Antonio, and put him in a fantastic position and believed in him and gave him a chance to run their team. I think he's great for Sacramento, and I think Sacramento is great for him."

Whether he is great for Sacramento remains to be seen, because Beno does have his issues as an on-the-floor leader and distributor. However, out of the remaining options available to the Kings (all-in on Gilbert -- unlikely -- or someone like Chris Duhon) he was clearly the most realistically appealing.

Beno's return gives the Kings essentially the same roster from last season, injury aside, that actually made some noise in a tough Western Conference. And even if he's not the perfect slam dunk, the Kings locked up their starting point guard without having to sacrifice any other parts.