South Sudanese-Australian wing Bul Kuol has signed a three-year deal with the Sydney Kings, sources told ESPN.
The third year of the deal is a mutual option, sources said, with the Kings opening NBL Free Agency on Monday by signing one of the best available players on the market.
Kuol - widely regarded as one of the NBL's most talented three-and-D players - will join the Kings after spending the first three seasons of his professional career with the Cairns Taipans. The 27-year-old averaged 12.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per game for the Taipans over the 2023-24 NBL season, shooting 40.1 percent (5.3 3PA) from beyond the three-point line.
Kuol informed the Taipans at the conclusion of their season that he wouldn't be returning to Cairns, sources said, allowing other teams to seek permission to speak with the 6'7 wing before the official opening of free agency.
The South East Melbourne Phoenix, New Zealand Breakers, and Illawarra Hawks were the other teams who showed initial interest in Kuol, sources said.
The Kings have reshaped in a significant way after a subpar season by their standard, signing six-time champion Brian Goorjian as their new head coach, luring one-time MVP Xavier Cooks back to the team, and now signing a starter-level local player in Kuol.
After back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, the Kings are coming off a season where they finished with a 13-15 record; good for fifth place. The team was eliminated from postseason contention with a loss in the first play-in game. The Kings subsequently fired short-lived head coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah, and aggressively sought a reunion with both Goorjian and Cooks.
The Kings - who will be among the most aggressive teams to start free agency - now have a roster that features Kuol, Cooks, Alex Toohey (Next Star), Shaun Bruce, Kouat Noi, and Makuach Maluach going into the 2024-25 NBL season.