Stat Anomaly Illustrates Sacramento Kings Peculiar Season

The numbers show that the Sacramento Kings should theoretically be better than their 13-14 record.

Dec 16, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) looks on during the fourth quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Golden 1 Center. | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

The Sacramento Kings are sitting at 13-14, good for 12th in the loaded Western Conference standings. Looking at just their record and spot in the standings leads one to think that it's been a disappointing season for the Kings, but looking at Sacramento's advanced numbers seems to tell a different story.

The Kings have a net rating, one of the simplest 'catch-all' stats available, of +3.4. That's good for the 11th-best net rating in the league.

On the flip side, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Kings opponent for tonight, sit at 14-12 but have the 22nd-ranked net rating of -3.8.

The Kings are 13-14 with a +3.4 Net Rating (11th)
The Lakers are 14-12 with a -3.8 Net Rating (22nd)

Pretty much sums up the disappointment of the season and how much losing the close games has cost the Kings.

— Will Z. Stats (@will_zimmerle) December 19, 2024

It's not just the Lakers that shows the oddity of Sacramento's net rating and record. The Kings are the only team in the NBA with a losing record and a positive net rating. It's an odd anomaly that is both disappointing and encouraging.

It's disappointing that the Kings have lost so many close games. They've gone 6-10 in 'clutch' games (when the game is within five points or less with five minutes or less left) and 3-9 in games decided by five or fewer points.

It's encouraging because they are so close to figuring things out. All signs point to the Kings theoretically being better than their record.

That means that with the players coming back from injury and the trade deadline looming, maybe they don't have to make wholesale changes to their roster.

If they can figure out how to be just a little bit better down the stretch and win close games, they stand to improve without any big changes. Until then though, the positive net rating with a losing record will show just how weird of a season the Kings are having.

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