NBA Draft Lottery Race Tightens as Kings Fall to Nets

The Sacramento Kings dropped their fourth straight game, and after two competitive losses, they let this one against the Brooklyn Nets get away early, and were never able to claw their way back in the game.

It was close enough to keep the main players in, but this was a game that felt the Kings were going to lose from the jump. Once again, they were dealing with injuries. DeMar DeRozan missed his second game of the season, and Malik Monk was out as well. Missing those two, along with the long list of the injured players out for the season.

Even with the Nets also down key players, there's no reason that the Kings should have been down 27 in the second quarter against the 17-57 Nets.

Picked Up a Game

The good news for the Kings is that the losing result is the best thing that could have happened today. It's hard to root for losses, but the Kings are on the presipace of falling out of the running for the top three spots in the draft lottery, and a win today against the Nets would have put them 2.5 games 'behind' Brooklyn.

With so few games left in the season, just six now for the Kings, that's an almost insurmountable number at the rate these bottom four teams are winning and losing. Now, though, the Kings are just 0.5 games ahead of the Nets, which is a toss-up for the rest of the season. The Nets still have the advantage, where if they lose out, they'll beat out the Kings in the race to the bottom, but it gives Sacramento, or at least Sacramento fans, something to root for in the final stretch of the season.

It's a sad but true reality to watch the draft lottery race this closely, but it's the situation that Sacramento put themselves in. To make it feel worse, they had the worst record for the majority of the year but have coughed it up in the last few weeks. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as building a culture and identity was the main priority for Doug Christie and Scott Perry this season. But it is nice that the hope for a higher draft pick following today's loss can still remain after such a long season for the Kings.

Kings Looked Flat

Mar 29, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward E.J. Liddell (9) dunks the ball against the Sacramento Kings during the first half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images | John Jones-Imagn Images

Even in the last few games, there have been some positive takeaways for the Kings, but everything just looked a little flat in today's early affair. Sacramento did play yesterday as well, and with the roster crunch from injuries, players are playing heavy minutes on a nightly basis. It could be the Kings don't have much left in the tank on their long road trip.

It's also possible they are sensing the end of the season as well. Almost all fans are ready for this season to end, and it seems logical to think that the same sentiment could be in the organization as well. We'll see how the Kings come out and compete next against the Toronto Raptors for the fifth and final game of their road trip.