Kings Barely Passing in New NBA Report Card
Sitting at fifth place in the Western Conference, the Sacramento Kings are looking to end the season hot to secure some home-court advantage in the NBA Playoffs. With a majority of their remaining games to be played at home, the Kings are in a good place to make that happen.
While the 2023-24 season hasn't been as good as their third-place finish in the West last year, it certainly hasn't been terrible. Sacramento is being led by an elite duo in De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis with a big boost coming off the bench in Sixth Man of the Year favorite Malik Monk.
Despite sitting well above .500, the Kings aren't getting a ton of respect. Inconsistent streaks along with some bad losses have shown this team is very beatable. On the other hand, the Kings have strung together some strong performances, most notably against the defending champs in the Denver Nuggets.
In a recent NBA report card made by The Ringer, the Sacramento Kings were handed a "C" grade at the two-thirds mark of the season. Looking through the grades, teams below Sacramento in the conference standings have much higher grades, demonstrating the standard the Kings are being held to coming off their best season in years.
The Ringer explained the reasoning behind their grade, saying:
The Kings’ issue is existential, not tactical. Their current .589 winning percentage is nearly identical to last year’s, but after a litany of firsts—from De’Aaron Fox’s first All-Star appearance to breaking a 16-season playoff drought—cracking .500 isn’t hitting the same in year two... Maybe this will be an era defined by regaining respectability more than contending for championships.
While gaining respect through consistent playoff appearances would improve how NBA fans look at Sacramento, it's also fair to say the standard shouldn't be a championship just yet. The Kings are still looking to win a playoff series first, and HC Mike Brown is pushing his squad in the right direction.
Reaching 50 wins on the season isn't out of the question for the Kings, especially considering that 15 of their remaining 25 games will be played at the Golden1 Center. If 50 wins is reached, it would be the first time in nearly 20 years for an organization that has only seen one winning season since 2006.
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