The Sacramento Kings are headed to the playoffs!
The Summer League playoffs, that is.
The final four teams are set:
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Charlotte Hornets
- Sacramento Kings
- Toronto Raptors
The Kings will take on the Raptors Saturday at 1 p.m. for a chance to advance to the championship on Sunday. There were six teams that finished Summer League 4-0, but only four make it to the playoffs. The tie breaker among the six teams is determined by the point differential. Of the four teams, the Kings have the lowest point differential, and the Raptors have the highest so technically Saturday’s game is the 1 seed v. the 4 seed.
That doesn’t matter though, the goal is just to get in and see what happens, especially when you have a Summer League champion pedigree like the Kings do.
Will we add another banner? We’ll find out this weekend.
My money is on Toronto, as they have been wearing uniforms designed by the genius at @NBA_Paint. That Raptor is a winner.
I watched a few minutes of their game last night and thought their collective defense was really solid. The kRangz will have their hands full Saturday.
What’s the over/under on how many times DC succumbs to their full-court pressure?
Hopefully Mason Jones will be available to take on some of the responsibility for getting the ball over the half-court line.
We have no shot to ever win an NBA title in our life times, may as well bask in SL ship glory.
SL title number 3 incoming with Nique as the MVP!
Hang them bannerz in the rafterz.
Dynasty, just summer league.
Superteam, just seasonal.
Superteam, just off-seasonal.
Super Summer team, just not young.
Super teaze, just yuck
OT, the Wizards are doing what we should have done, quite impressive what they’ve accomplished this offseason and really since the BB trade:
In what eventually morphed into a three-team trade, the Wizards sent Jordan Poole, Saddiq Bey and the 40th pick in this year’s NBA Draft, Micah Peavy, to the New Orleans Pelicans for CJ McCollum, Kelly Olynyk and the Chicago Bulls’ 2027 second-round pick.
The move wasn’t about the players. It was about the money.
McCollum and Olynyk, who the Wizards later flipped to the San Antonio Spurs for Branham, Blake Wesley and a second-round pick, are on expiring contracts. Meanwhile, Poole and Bey combine to make $40.5 million in 2026-27. That means with one move, the Wizards shed approximately 25 percent of next season’s projected salary cap from their roster. They did so by removing one player (Poole) who makes more than his market value and another (Bey) who hasn’t played in an NBA game since March 2024.
Getting off of undesirable money in today’s marketplace, where teams worry about tax payments and aprons galore, is not normally this smooth.
The Wizards are creating flexibility at every angle. They have mastered trade exceptions (TPEs). They looped the Whitmore trade into the New Orleans one, which allowed them to maintain an extra TPE. When they dealt Olynyk to the Spurs, they didn’t just acquire a couple of former first-rounders still in their early 20s, guys who seem to have flamed out in San Antonio but are worth a try on a rebuilding squad. They also slid Branham into a previous trade exception and Wesley into the biannual exception to create another, significantly larger trade exception worth $13.4 million.
If a team needs to dump money during the season, the Wizards will be one of its first calls.
Washington projects to enter next summer with more than $100 million in cap room. And no, that doesn’t mean the Wizards, who are bound for the bottom of the standings once again in 2025-26, will hunt for stars. But it means the team now has malleability it hasn’t had in a decade.
It has three respected veterans — McCollum, Marcus Smart and Khris Middleton — on bulky, expiring contracts. If the Wizards want to use their 2026 cap space before the summer, they can exchange any to all of those three for players on multi-year deals, receiving sweeteners, such as draft picks or young players, as a thank you.
If they take that strategy, chances are they will receive a better piece than the 40th pick in return.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6500752/2025/07/18/oklahoma-city-thunder-washington-wizards-offseason-nba/?source=user_shared_articleThunder’s Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren deals among NBA’s best under-the-radar moves
The Wizards haven’t always been one of the NBA’s best run franchises. That’s hope for the Kings.
At the bottom, but on a sensible budget.
They are like the Kings, the Maloofian version.
I can see some glimmer, but really, it’s about the winning. Sure, OKC did a dip something sorta like that, and they just won the Larry O’B. Maybe, Washington will emerge from the depths and have a parade. Given their ownership history, I would consider that a massive surprise.
More likely, it’s Summer League success followed by lottery luck hope. Rinse. Repeat.
Again, sounds like the Kings.
Actually they have been on average a poorly run franchise . They became the Wizards in 1997 and have won 40% of games during almost three decades. Does appear that the current NEW front office has the franchise on track .
Agreed.
The NBA nerd talking heads are going to love covering this Wiz rebuild and will be their darlings like OKC has been the last 5 years.
They still could have gotten that awesome $11.53 million for being under the tax if they tanked. Many teams have tanked over the years. Why not the Kings? Who are they kidding with getting Da Bullz? Who thought those were ‘smart’ trades? We could have had Fox, Barnes,and Huerter as expiring right now. Prime rebuild territory! Those two Bullz trades did nothing to either improve the team or to get a better draft choice. Pick a lane! Does the Little Chap really think 10th place is such a savvy trick to placate the fans?
This has me recollecting another #4 seed that went on to win the NBA Championship – Yes, that’s right, you know see it as well I am sure. That 1968-69 year when the #4 seeded Boston Celtics, led by Player-Coach (amazingly, there were not four or five other player-assistant coaches, I kid you not) who highlighted his career as a Kings GM, none other than Bill Russell (the same one who the Finals MVP trophy is named after).
‘Nique is our John Havlicek.
Beat those
Lakers!Raptors!As an NBA franchise the Kings are really good at competing at a sub-NBA level of basketball. G-League and Summer League titles are, uh… something.
The Kings are interested in…Ben Simmons? That’s the reporting from the Jake Fischer. Guess they REALLY are desperate for a PG.
Ugh I’ll be camping. That will be nice but dammit I’m missing Kings playoff* basketball!
So the Kings got $11.5M for once again being below the tax line. I honestly don’t blame them. There is no reason to spend above the tax when you project to be a 40 win team. But then again, if that is your goal every year, then it’s a nice payoff to be irrelevant
So what happens with the tax money teams receive. Does that just go into the operating budget of a team, into the pockets of owners, players?
https://bsky.app/profile/mikevorkunov.bsky.social/post/3lubeshhd7s2p
I might put real money on the under on that. There’s no way this squad of mismatched geriatric ball hogs is winning 40 games again.
Oh, I agree. My only suggestion was that might be the intention. $11.5M to remain average? That’s a nice incentive.
Also known as the post Jordan Bulls model.
I mean I get it. Until you land a generational talent, just tread water to line your pockets.
The problem I have with the Kings is that they don’t seem to interested in attempting to land a generational talent. It takes effort to be bad enough to get great enough. I guess you can attempt the luck route with late lottery and 2nd picks. It worked for Denver. That being said, history shows top 3 picks are the likeliest route to a generational superstar.
There is also, Kobe #13, Dirk #9, Kwai #15, Giannis #14, SGA #11, Wade #5, Curry #7, . Maybe Clifford #24 some day ? It does happen as Joker the true outlier #41 has proven ! Sadly, if it’s Clifford , likely not as a King .
It worked for the Kings! They just screwed it up.
Yes. Add to that this team is constantly using assets to dump salary.
It’s used to keep the beer prices under $50.00 a cup
I did cite this as a reason against blowing it all up awhile go. You really want to blow up the roster and go young when these guys are going to stay in college and get paid for a few years, it’s the wrong time to reach for that blueprint.
For F-sake, college is saving the NBA from themselves. The 18yr and one-‘n done were terrible for the league. These kids come into the league, can’t play for a few years but have to play them. Also cannot sell a ticket. The few that do develop want to jump like a Fox over the river bank after 5-6 years of investment.
Ya the next few drafts could be slim pickings but this is a win-win-win for the NBA. Will end up getting rookies who can actually play and make an impact early in their NBA career. These guys will enter the league with a following and reputation and will generate business from the start.
Now need to convince them to kick all playoff teams out of the draft. Only lottery teams get to draft that year with 3/4 picks each. It would be a much better league if teams actually had the resources to rebuild, it’s pure luck under the current system.
Half goes to not luxury tax teams, half to the league office.
NBA teams can use the luxury tax payout to support their financial operations, such as funding player salaries, improving facilities, or investing in team development.
The league portion can be used to fund operations, or to give to the non tax paying teams (doubt they do that second part, lol)
Specifically how the Kings use, I couldn’t find any details. Instead of the owners using their own money for support staff, building a practice facility, upgrading the arena, they can use the tax payout.
Damn, that money ($11.53M) was earmarked for Mike Brown.
Let’s see, where can we spend these new found samolaons…
Let’s re-introduce Roy-Al – this time with cheese!
And 1:
This made me laugh (IYKYK)
https://x.com/realmurphdog916/status/1946075954897670609?s=46&t=LRRFdoSPcReEZERgnElWRA
Might sound crazy….but hear me out…win the Summer League Crown…go out on top…forfeit the regular season and go 0-82…and secure #1 pick…might work.
Folks are underestimating this Sacramento Kings squad.They are loaded with talented veterans and have exciting young talent. Buckle up folks it’s going to be and exciting ride this year!
Not the squad I’d put together, but if DC were to put out the following lineups, at least they’d be better balanced skill-wise even if still too small:
Schroder // Ellis // LaVine // Murray // Domas
Monk // Clifford // DDR // Jones // Max
Badge Legend