One of the hardest parts of the Play-In Tournament is the suddenness of it all. That’s also the appeal, and I’m certainly not advocating for any changes to the play-in structure, but being eliminated in a single game situation just hits a little different than losing in a first round series, even in a series that went 7 games leading to the same sort of sudden death environment. I’m still going over all the way things could have gone differently, and yet it’s hard to imagine any different outcome. As long as the Pelicans showed up for the game, they were going to win. They were Sacramento’s kryptonite the entire season, and proved that it wasn’t a fluke.
Before we begin looking ahead, it’s worth taking a moment to reflect back on the season. The Kings entered this season with a bit of a hangover. The meteoric rise to the third seed last season, coupled with a lack of significant offseason roster changes, led to an odd combination of continuity and expectations leading to disappointment. Last season the Kings had a 118.6 (1st) ORTG, a 116.0 (24th) DRTG, and a 2.6 (8th) Net Rating. The Kings ended this year with a 116.2 (13th) ORTG, 114.4 (14th) DRTG, and a 1.8 (16th) Net Rating. And those numbers line up with eye test. The defense was better, especially down the end stretch of the season. The offense was worse, just lacking that same firepower that they displayed last season. And the coaching staff and front office have openly discussed these same trends.
One thing missing from those numbers is the larger context that the league as a whole, and especially the Western Conference, were much tougher this season. The Kings lost just two more games than last season, and yet they landed 9th instead of 3rd in the West. Prior to this season, 7 teams in NBA history missed the playoffs despite winning 45 games or more. This season that happened to both the Kings and the Warriors. The Western Conference was absolutely brutal this season.
Of course, with the West being so tough, it’s important to remember the self-inflicted wounds from this season. The Kings lost too many games to the league’s cellar dwellers. The Kings lost a game each to the Portland Trail Blazers, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons, and Charlotte Hornets. Those are the bottom four teams in the league. Flip those four losses to wins and the Kings would have had a 50 win season, and wouldn’t have needed to worry about the play-in at all. That doesn’t even account for all the blow leads and other missed opportunities. The Bucks loss, the Suns loss, losing to Indiana without Haliburton and Siakam. The list goes on. It was a frustrating and baffling season.
Yet despite all that, there’s plenty of reason for optimism moving forward. The Kings lost Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk down the stretch, having a huge impact on the team. But those losses opened the door for Keon Ellis to emerge as another key piece of the team’s future. Keegan Murray expanded his offensive arsenal and become a defensive force. Domantas Sabonis treated us to 61 straight games of double doubles. And we ended the Golden State Warriors season. Yes, there are concerns about this squad going into the summer, especially with the free agency of Malik Monk, but the future remains bright for the Kings.
And we’ll be here to cover it all. We’ll begin our Season Review series soon, we’ll track the upcoming NBA Draft, we’ll anxiously watch free agency and trades and see how Monte McNair and Co. can improve this squad. Until then, thank you for spending another season of Kings basketball with us.
