Curry fits the second part of those parameters, having only been in the league for three seasons. If he opts out, the Kings can make him a restricted free agent by giving him a qualifying offer, which they almost assuredly will, as the qualifying offer is basically the same amount as his player option. From there, the Kings can work on a new contract with Curry, match another contract offer he signs, or he can simply accept the qualifying offer.

Of course, Curry can just opt to take his player option and then become an unrestricted free agent next year, perhaps banking on a bigger contract offer in the summer of 2017 if he gets a full season to showcase his abilities (and keeps performing) and he also won't have to worry about teams being gunshy at giving him an offer because the Kings could match it.

Either way, the Kings have a lot more leverage in keeping Curry for next season than you might have previously thought. It will be interesting to see what Curry chooses to do with regards to his player option, but we won't find that out until sometime later this month.