NBA Analyst Praises Kings: 'They Can Be One-Seed in the West'

Many NBA analysts believe the Sacramento Kings will either fall off a cliff in the 2023-24 season or catapult to a championship contender, with little wiggle room in between. The Kings are coming off a 48-win year, finishing 3rd in the Western Conference, yet many predict them to miss the 2024 playoffs.

Michael Wilbon of ESPN is in the group of analysts who believe the Kings will get better, as he sees them as one of the top teams in the Western Conference. During the NBA on ESPN halftime show of Sacramento's preseason matchup against the Golden State Warriors, Wilbon praised the Kings with a bold prediction (via @DeuceMason / X):

"I've got a crush on the Kings. Listen, the West is so loaded, it looks like there are 12 playoff teams in the West... What teams care about their seeding? What teams are going to try to go wire-to-wire every night out?... The team that I actually expect to feel that way and approach the regular season that way is the Sacramento Kings... Talk about disrespect, nobody even mentions the Kings in a packed Western Conference... We don't take, as a community, the Kings all that seriously even though I voted De'Aaron Fox First Team All-NBA last season... I expect to light the beam a lot. Regular season, I think they can be one-seed in the West."

The Kings are one of the few 2023 playoff teams in the Western Conference that are returning their entire core group of players, which can be both an advantage and a disadvantage.

While keeping the same group of guys gives a team consistency and helps build chemistry, they failed to add elite talent in the off-season. Did they need to make a big off-season move? Not necessarily, but after getting bounced in the first round of the 2023 playoffs, many fans expected a move would be made.

Adding G Chris Duarte, who has emerged as a potential starter, has been one of the most underrated off-season moves in the league. Signing veteran C JaVale McGee gives Sacramento elite rim protection and a serious lob threat. Bringing in reigning EuroLeague MVP F Sasha Vezenkov adds even more firepower to an already-electric offense.

While the Kings did not make any league-changing moves in the off-season, they retained the core while adding depth, which is why they are the most slept-on team heading into the 2023-24 NBA season.

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