Kings Left Out of Top 10 in ESPN Power Rankings After Loss to Pelicans
The Sacramento Kings are 11-8 on the season and get an extended break until Friday to recover after an In-Season Tournament quarterfinal loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. While the Kings are certainly putting out strong performances, they are also losing games poorly after the first month and a half of the 2023-24 NBA season.
The newest ESPN Power Rankings were released Wednesday, and the Kings made no jump from the previous week - remaining at 11. The Kings failed to crack the top 10 after a week that they went 2-2, despite beating the Golden State Warriors and Denver Nuggets.
For reference, here are the top 10 teams:
1. Boston Celtics
2. Minnesota Timberwolves
3. Denver Nuggets
4. Oklahoma City Thunder
5. Milwaukee Bucks
6. Philadelphia 76ers
7. Phoenix Suns
8. Orlando Magic
9. New York Knicks
10. Indiana Pacers
While the Kings have taken down the teams ranked 2-4 already, they have 5 losses to two teams: two to the Warriors and three to the Pelicans. The Kings also sit at 8 in the NBA Power Rankings, above the New York Knicks, Phoenix Suns, and Indiana Pacers.
Kendra Andrews of ESPN makes a fantastic point about the Kings season:
"When they win, they look like they could beat anyone. But when they lose, it's a completely different team."
The Kings set the record for the most efficient offense in NBA history last season and broke a 16-year playoff drought. As Sacramento continues into Mike Brown's second year as head coach, the difference from previous years is night and day. But there is still a bit more meshing the Kings need to work on. At their peak, they are arguably the most fun team to watch in all of basketball, however, their losses tend to be big, and they look pretty disorganized.
The Kings are one of three teams with a winning record on the season, but a negative point differential - meaning they are getting blown out too frequently in their losses. Despite this, the Kings are still often more electric than slow. While they are not in the top 10 right now, they could very easily crack it in the coming weeks - if not getting closer to the top 5.
The Kings play again on Friday, December 8, against the Phoenix Suns.
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