A Way-Too-Early Look at the Kings' 2027 Playoff Chances

The Sacramento Kings are obviously far from an NBA title contender, but how close are they to competing for a playoff spot? While the Kings are amid a rebuild era, focusing on their new-look young core led by seventh-overall pick Darius Acuff Jr., is there any chance for them to be a playoff team in 2027?

Simply put, we will likely not see the Kings in the playoffs next season. However, we can look at why not and how close they might be.

Why the Kings are far from the playoffs

Jan 16, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (10) reacts against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Even if the Kings overperform next season, there are just too many teams in the Western Conference that are better than them. Just looking at the obvious teams, we have the OKC Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, and Minnesota Timberwolves all significantly better than the Kings. Then, there are also the Portland Trail Blazers, Dallas Mavericks, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors, L.A. Clippers, and Phoenix Suns that should be better than the Kings.

Simply put, the Kings would need a near miracle just to finish in the top 12 of the West next season. Now, we can look at their internal problems.

Granted, the Kings are moving in the right direction, bolstering their young core and slowly parting with their veterans, starting with DeMar DeRozan this offseason. However, this is a long process for them.

With the 7th pick of the NBA Draft the @SacramentoKings select Darius Acuff Jr.!

The 2026 NBA Draft is LIVE on ABC & ESPN. pic.twitter.com/nk1zyfj3uW
— NBA (@NBA) June 24, 2026

The Kings actually have a solid core right now around Acuff Jr., Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, Keegan Murray, Maxime Raynaud, and a few other notable names, but a lack of defense and cohesion will likely hinder them from being an actual competitive team.

In the best scenario, the Kings' young core shows signs of improvement, while the veterans improve their trade value. A successful 2026-27 season for the Kings will not necessarily be determined by their record, although if every domino falls properly, we could maybe see this team win 35-40 games, which would put them in the play-in hunt.

What do the oddsmakers say?

According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the Kings might as well kiss the 2026-27 season goodbye.

The Kings' current regular season win projection sits at just 22.5, which is the lowest in the NBA. On a related note, they are given -5000 odds to MISS the playoffs. That is an implied probability of 98%.

FanDuel and many fans alike have no faith in the Kings next season. They have +1000 odds to make the play-in tournament and +2700 odds to make the playoffs. As I said before, there are other ways the Kings can have a successful 2026-27 season, so having their playoff expectations on the floor is certainly the best way to approach the new year.

The Kings will likely have another rough season, and we can only hope that they improve from their disastrous 60-loss 2025-26 campaign.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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