Update: 9:45 pm
The Sacramento Kings have now won 4 games in a row. The Kings defeated the Wizards 128-115. It was the return of Domantas Sabonis as he finished with 13 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists in 21 minutes. He did not start. Maxime Raynaud started (likely due to easing Sabonis back into the rotation off an injury). Russell Westbrook led the team in scoring with 26.
The Kings shot 58% from the field and 48% from three. They won rebounding 45-34.
The tank is starting to smoke as it has crashed several times this week.
From Earlier Preview:
Well, the Kings have started winning basketball games. Their current 3-game winning streak is the longest of the season, and they’ll be getting Domantas Sabonis back tonight. The tank weeps.
Who: Sacramento Kings (11-30) vs. Washington Wizards (10-30)
Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA
When: 7:00 PM PT / 10:00 PM ET
Watch: NBCSCA / League Pass
The big storyline tonight is the aforementioned return of Domantas Sabonis. Sacramento’s best player and starting center hasn’t played since November 16th, and when he was on the court, things weren’t exactly going well. By basically every metric, the 2025-26 version of Sabonis is the worst we’ve seen since he was traded here in 2022. A lot of elements factor into that: he’s older, the team is less talented, the roster makes zero sense, he’s working with a new coach, new point guard, blah blah blah.
All that being said, it’ll be interesting to see if the time away helped him figure any of those issues out. With the NBA trade deadline approaching, a strong Sabonis run here could improve his market, relieve Sabonis from his duties on this awful squad, and allow the organization to recover some younger assets. Win-win.
Part of the reason I’m immediately jumping into Sabonis trade speculation mode is the arrival of Maxime Raynaud. The rookie center out of Stanford played very well in Domas’ absence, and the Kings really need to be using these games to develop their young talent (and lose games). I’m glad Sabonis is healthy, but Sacramento’s very old starting unit is about to get older with his return, and Raynaud’s role will likely be heavily reduced.
Unless Doug Christie shocks the world, and starts Sabonis and Raynaud together. I know that would be my preference, in the spirit of why the hell not? But I’m doubtful that we see it. That’s too bold. Too interesting. Too different.
I haven’t even mentioned the draft position ramifications yet. A week ago the Kings were the second worst team in the NBA. A win tonight over the Wizards, a team they should beat at home, would bump them up to 5th. I know the draft lottery odds are flatter than the last time the Kings were fighting for a top pick, but this thing is starting to trend in the wrong direction. The only thing worse than being old and bad is being old and bad, but not bad enough to land top flight talent in the draft.
There’s plenty of basketball left to play, but the Kings’ schedule is incredibly light over their last 20+ games, and they run the risk of winning a lot of meaningless games down the stretch if they don’t commit to the tank.
Prediction: Kings 120, Wizards 114.
Thank the Wizards for taking on Trae.
Here’s to hoping that that’s where he’ll stay.
‘Cause we’ve often been stung
Getting guys like Trae Young.
For now, Vivek won’t get his way!
+1 The tanks are rolling tonight (Pels vs Pacers and Wizards vs Kings)!
Final 4 Tankout round!
Sorcerer’s Apprentice doing a dance wearing a Wizard hat!
&ct=g
Kings win!
Tank or no tank I’m happy to see Sabonis back on the court. Just a good guy who works hard and never causes drama.
Yes! Team has been playing better which helps, but Domas and/or Keegan make the team much more fun to watch. Even though it hurts the tank. Up to the front office to clear players on the wrong time-line.
Kings living up to its Play In potential. Vivek will do another TikTok dance video.
Jeeze way to blow that lead in textbook fashion.
Im disappointed in you TKHers! Nobody mentioned that this could be a Marvin Bagley revenge game?
I legit didn’t know Bagley was still in the NBA.
Out tanked by Wiz, they got Trae Young and will probably get a higher pick too.
I like Cardwell but I can do without his theatrics.
I really enjoyed this game if only because I’ve always wanted to see Sabonis playing next to a true rim blocker. I know he will probably never be a high 3pt threat, but it frees up so many things from pick and rolls to different defensivec rotations. I wanted us to draft Edey just to see how that would work.
Pretty sure these last 4 games have been fools gold. But it’s the first time I’ve looked at the pieces and gone, I can sort of see how this could all work with a couple of trades instead of a full blow up. Which I know most of us are not in favorite of.
I personally love seeing Clarkson’s theatrics, because it’s great seeing someone have fun on the Kings again. There hasn’t been much of that this year. I wouldn’t mind if we keep winning, if only because we wouldn’t be trading from a point of desperation when we do.
The drop in average TKH game-thread comments from 150+ to roughly a dozen has been the most depressing part of this season. And it’s not the commenters’ fault. This isn’t a team, it’s a product. (A bad one.)
In all seriousness, every win at this point potentially sets this franchise further back. There really is no positive outcome for meaningless wins this season. Kings now have the possibility of dropping to 8th in the lottery.
I truly fear Vivek is sitting back right now and feeling this is a play-in team.
Blow it up already.
Yeah, front office needs to clear the old guys and soon
hopefully they told the team that it’s now time to actually play well so they can showcase themselves before the trading deadline and have the best chance of getting out of basketball hell
I love the man, but a healthy Sabonis will hurt the tank. He’s a significant upgrade over Maxi and he makes everyone else better. If Perry is serious about a rebuild then Sabonis is likely to be dealt. He will have value now that he is healthy. I bet the Raps come a knocking.
Domas and DDR for Barrett, Quickly, and Murray-Boyles and a pick would be my starting point.
I’m in.
My guess is the Raps want to send back Peoltl. I’m a hard NO on that one unless he comes with multiple picks. That dude’s contract is no bueno.
These are costly wins in the grand scheme of things. The blowup should have been started a while back, if not in the offseason.
I refuse to watch until this franchise chooses the proper direction.
Fk vivek and sp.
You know he is. The worst place to be in the NBA is exactly where the kings reside with this owner. Not a playoff winning team but not a top three lottery pick
Fuck this owner. He just needs to leave.
I knew we couldn’t trust this franchise to do a proper tank, glad to be checked out of this mess and will continue on that path.
For all the people who just want to blow up the team, I get it. But honestly look at the way the Fox trade went. Everyone wanted to get rid of him and look what we got back. Just blowing up this team and trading all the veterans does not guarantee there’s going to be any change in management or style.
If I were rooting for a normal team with great management I would be okay with that. But I don’t trust a rebuild any more than I trust what’s going on so far.
So just give up and don’t bother with trades or a rebuild? Accept reality as it is and continue whine about Vivek? Maybe next year would should just continue to add aging vets. I hear Klay Thompson may be available. I bet Kyle Lowry will take the vet’s minimum to start for next year’s squad.
Complacency doesn’t work either.
When did I say that? I’ve searched all my posts, and hey, guess what? Haven’t used the word complacent once.
I mean…Of course there is no guarantee they will be successful trading vets and rebuilding. At this point you would have to bet against it.
What is a guarantee is that this team is awful and there is no path for them not to be awful keeping 2/3’s or more of these players.
The Fox trade was not a rebuild trade. It was a “get LaVine and try to win now with that” trade. Same with the Schroeder signing and the Achoo and Westie signings. They need to pick a direction. Continually shifting deck chairs to max out as a play-in team doesn’t work. You have to get bad and young for a bit. And while you’re doing that get cap space and use that to accumulate draft assets. Draft a couple pieces to build around then build the team up.
It would be great if we actually tried that method, before we declare it a failure based on our results trying to build a team the wrong way for 20 years.
Trading Fox was supposed to be get good players. And we got crap. I’m just saying that anyone who thinks that trading all the vets is suddenly going to make this team run better now or in the future is deluded.
I don’t think anyone is expecting a miracle overnight. Clear the cap sheet, accumlate draft capital, and go with youth. It takes time but it really hasn’t been attempted in the Vivek era.
The only minor attempt at a tear down and rebuild was when the Kings traded away their then best play in DMC for Buddy and a pick and then drafted Fox (they blew the #10 pick they got from Nola by trading down for Justin Jackson and Giles). Even then Vivek couldn’t help himself and the Kings went out and signed George Hill (who originally started over Fox), Vince Carter, and Zach fucking Randolph to “win now” with a bunch of old vets. That’s not how you do a rebuild!
Vivek has never let this team do a full and proper rebuild with youth, so to say it hasn’t worked in the past, I respond with… it’s never been truly attempted
The 2017 Draft made a ton of sense – get a blue chip PG, a solid college wing and a take a swing at a wildly talented big who had injury issues. That was not a process problem, it just didn’t work out because JJ turned out to be a marginal NBA guy and Harry couldn’t get healthy.
Yes, there were better retrospective moves they could have made but it made sense in the moment. The 2018 draft… ugghh.
Who the fuck expects this team to suddenly run good? But if they blow it up and get a bunch of young players and young talent in the form of a very high draft pick they might get good despite themselves.
Bizzare take. So, just run with this shit that’s in that horrible middle of no contention and no high pick?
certsinly, I doubt Vivek allows for Perry to try to build but that’s the only hope.
Not to mention, being really bad is going to lead to high pics, but may be the only way to get rid of Vivek. Or stop his meddling.
So, if you rebuild, you have a chance to be really bad or really good. Otherwise you just don’t have any chance
And I don’t know about everybody wanting to get rid of fox? I don’t remember that way. That was all the owner being an asshole.
Excuse me? When did I say we should just run with what we have? Don’t put words in my mouth. You talk like there are only two options. Stick with exactly what we have or blow it all up. Neither of those are going to happen and neither of those are going to get you a winning team any time in the near future.
I’ve been a Kings fan for as long as they’ve been in Sac. And I’ve been on various versions of this board nearly as long. I’ve seen a few good teams and some really bad teams. But the best teams didn’t come from tearing the entire team apart and starting getting scratch or staying with the same players. They didn’t come from getting the number 1 pick for sure. They came from taking advantage of opportunities that we’re presented.
But, hey, if tanking and relying on this ownership to magically rebuild a winner from the ground up is your dream, feel free to believe it
And really, you don’t remember all the people saying how much we needed to trade Fox because we couldn’t build a winning team around him? You might want to search some of the previous posts then. It wasn’t that long ago.
And I’ve said many times in the past here, most people who have struck around this long here want the Kings to be successful. We just have different ideas on how that will happen. Respect other opinions or don’t. It’s your choice.
So what is your point exactly, then?
Because you are accusing everyone from putting words in your mouth without clarifying your position.
The above quotes seem to suggest that it doesn’t matter what we do, we’re hosed anyway (which I would agree with).
Trades I would 100% get done if I were the GM =
1.) SABONIS AND RUSS to the PISTONS for one future first round pick, Jayden Ivey, Ausur Thompson and Tobias Harris
2.) Demar DeRozan, Keon Ellis and Devin Carter to the ROCKETS for VanVleet, Tari Eason, and Jeff Green
3.) Zac Lavine, Drew Eubanks and a second round pick for Julius Randle, Mike Conely and Rob Dilingham
4.) Schroeder for Joan Beringer and Mike Conely
5.) Monk and Saric to the lakers for Rui Hachimura, Knecht and Drew Timme
In the off Season I would then look to trade Julius Randle
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