The Eastern Conference Finals continue tonight. Sure would be a shame if Tyrese Haliburton’s choking taunt comes back to bite him.
New York Knicks @ Indiana Pacers – 5:00 PM PT / 8:00 PM ET
- Pacers lead the series 3-2
NBA Playoffs Open Thread – Saturday, May 31
Can the New York Knicks keep their season alive?
By Tony Xypteras | 63 Comments | May 31, 2025
May 29, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) controls the ball against Indiana Pacers guard T.J. McConnell (9) in the fourth quarter during game five of the eastern conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
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I want a game 7. I need a game 7.
You know who else wants a game 7? Mr. Silver wants a game 7 in MSG and Final’s games at MSG. It wouldn’t surprise me if some calls went the Knickerbocker’s way tonight.
Simmons in a recent pod alluded to the 2022 WCF, game 6, when all the calls went the Lakers way over us and the same in Game 7 for the Fakers to reach the Finals.
Just sayin.
This is the year where market size for the finals teams matters the least. NBA just signed new 11 year 76 Billion dollar TV deal to start for the 25-26 season. Poor ratings? Bummer for the previous rites holders.
https://theringer.com/2025/05/30/nba/nba-playoffs-2025-indiana-pacers-oklahoma-city-thunder-contenders
Nice article by Beck on how contenders are built in today’s NBA, specifically focusing on how the Pacers were built over the last half decade plus. One of the key takeaways was having patience. We could have used some of that when we had Fox and Hali. What could have been if those two were kept together and permitted to figure out how to play with and off one another. A year and half was not long enough before making a short sighted, impulsive trade.
Fun fact, Haliburton now has as many playoff wins the last two years (18) as the Kangz have had the last 22 years. Yet some still say we don’t know who won the trade.
I’m sorry but I don’t really care. What is done is done. Let’s now focus on the future of the Kings. Haliburton has his fame and he has earned it. Fox is having fun playing for the Spurs. I like both but that is all in the past. I want to support my favorite team the Sacramento Kings. I don’t know what will happen in the next five years but hope we can be a team like OKC or Pacers. It isn’t up to me. We might not have DDR,Monk or even Sabonis but I need someone like a Perry or a Christie to figure things out so I again be a happy King’s fan. GO KINGS!
Yeah, this is the mind-set that I always default to.
I love Fox and Hali and I didn’t like how either of them were ousted, but they’re not here anymore. I’ll still root for Fox and Hali when its suits me, but I’m a Kings fan despite everything the team’s ownership has put me through and their proven ineptitude.
I’m sorry, but this done is done is ridiculous. This was said after we traded for a pick swap for Philly for…. Cap space for Rondo, bellineli, and Koufax’s. What’s done is done after cousins trade for only hield and a top 10 protected pick. ( side note trade down and pass Mitchell for Justin Jackson and Giles). What’s done is done for passing on Luka for bagley. It’s gotten to the point it really bothers me, as kings fans, that we have this attitude about this team. This is literally the most embarrassing franchise in the league. Why can’t we just own that and realize our owner has no clue what he’s doing and what’s best for the team is for him to sell it. Their is so much evidence of incompetence and I’m just tired of seeing a lot of us bury our heads in the sand.
I would say it’s the most embarrassing franchise in professional sports but I agree with the rest.
Thank you. Some commenters try to dictate narratives here and what others can post. Haliburton is in the Finals a year after Luka was in the Finals. These things matter. One should still be a King and the other should have been a King.
To each their own.
Goes back to trying to keep Fox happy. We did the same with DeMarcus. Kings should be in a “best player available” mode until they are consistently 50 game winners. Imagine Luka and Haliburton in the backcourt with an undrafted Lou Dort and what a Fox trade could have yielded 2-3 years ago. Monte wasn’t very good at his job. Vlade was even worse. Could have had Tatum if not for his stupid pick swap.
Yep. It’s the old
”Let’s not jump to conclusions – let it play out.”
(Time passes)
Let’s not talk about it – it’s played out.”
I understand that it is a frustrating (and as it pertains to the Kings, redundant) conversation, but here’s a short list of items that we can’t discuss right now:
We can, however, talk about our arena. It’s nice.
Hope springs eternal, and that’s great. But there is also the reality of this organization’s historical performance, and it is increasingly difficult to ignore.
I don’t understand these comments about not being allowed to discuss certain topics and I’m really confused about your list there, you list several “banned” topics that aren’t relevant at all:
The issues you listed aren’t relevant to the Kings, so it’s kind of strange to be upset that you aren’t talking about them unless your point is that you want to talk about the things the Kings aren’t doing. If you want, start a discussion here on this thread about those exact issues, no one is preventing you from doing so.
I, personally, don’t like to engage in discussions about moves made by previous decision makers but that is just me. The old FO personnel are gone, so any moves they approved have no relevance to future moves made by the new FO. If you want to talk about how everything is going to be shitty as long as Vivek is around, that’s fine but its a bit pointless because Vivek isn’t going anywhere. I prefer to engage in discussions of potential moves and the associated pitfalls/rewards of those subject moves and providing input/receiving input from the community.
The fanbase is mostly in agreement…the franchise is currently a shit-show. I would prefer to talk about how we get out of it rather than how we got into it. We can’t forget the mistakes of the past, but they don’t hold sway on what we do in the future.
Regarding the Hali/Domas trade, we were allowed to judge it immediately because we got the older player in the deal. The only time you may want to hold off on judgement is when you receive the younger player. We’ve discussed here it for years, and people can keep on discussing it if they want to. There seems to be a lot of “Everyone who doesn’t agree with me is oppressing my ideas” going on.
People like me who don’t want to engage aren’t saying you can’t talk about it and we aren’t keeping others from engaging.
You missed my point – sorry if I was not clear. We cannot discuss those items because they do not exist. Hence, we find other things to discuss.
And my comment was not in response to any of your comments. I was responding to Nathan, who had responded to Jack.
What else are we supposed to talk about? The Kings aren’t making the playoffs for another decade plus because of dumb decisions like the Haliburton trade. The owner continues to make the same dumb decisions. So why not talk about it? We’re helping other franchises build title contending teams that are frankly just more interesting than whatever stupid thing the Kings are up to.
You can talk about it from here to eternity. I’m not going to because in my mind it doesn’t relate. I want to talk about how are we going to get a point guard to run this team. I want to talk about what are we going to do to trade DDR and maybe Monk. I want to talk about what kind of offense if any Doug is going to run this year. I want to talk about is Perry and company running the show 100% this year. So many more questions to ask and answer about what’s happening now and in the future not what was in the past. I want to look forward not backwards. I really want to support the Kings going forward. Talking about Vivek and his involvement with whatever is now not in the past. I will talk about those kind of things. Talking about Haliburton and what he is doing on the Pacers is revellant. Talking about who won the trade to be is in the past. You or I aren’t going to change that so IMO drop the whole thing.
I get it man. I really do. I’ve just reached the point where for me, it takes so much cognitive dissonance to ignore the 110 pound dismissive little elephant in the room, that I can’t root for the Kings like a normal team. I can’t assume competence. I can’t take their actions at face value. I can’t assume they’re trying to compete for a title. I’m forced to reckon with this entire organization being a vanity project for Vivek to hang out with famous people and try to show everyone how smart he is. Sadly that’s all the Kings are now. They aren’t competing for anything. Not really. They’ll win a few games here and there but the last three years have made it clear that making the playoffs isn’t as important as the illusion of trying to make them.
I do envy fans like you who are able to put all that stuff aside and just evaluate individual transactions on their own merits. I wish I had the ability to do that but I just don’t anymore. I want the Kings to compete for a title. Whether they win 34 or 38 games a season in perpetuity is something I no longer find interesting.
Set the bar higher
why reward them with your loyalty when ownership only cares about profit and not winning?
Exactly. Vivek is playing the fans for fools.
I’ve said for a while if the Sonics come back they’re probably going to be my 1B in terms of interest. My problem is I just genuinely don’t care about any other teams I didn’t grow up liking. This community keeps me here and as interested as I can be at this point in where the franchise currently stands.
I buy a city jersey each season but I haven’t spent money on the team outside of that since 2018. The problem is most kings fans probably aren’t on this site and are just happy to have a pro team in the capital and will be fans most likely no matter what even if they’re not good. We all have been for so long its just some of us see what it is now
I was a Kings fan before Vivek came around and I’ll be one after he’s gone.
Same here. That said, I’m 40 and in excellent health but I might be dead before we’re rid of Vivek and his progeny. I actually fully expect to never see the Kings win a title in my lifetime. Heck, I don’t even expect them to make the finals in my lifetime.
You don’t have to be a Vivek fan. I certainly don’t but you can still be Kings fan. I certainly do.
Jack, I genuinely appreciate what I believe to be your sincerity here. I might be too broken at this point to be saved. All I really want is some semblance of a coherent strategy. 12 years of Vivek and counting and I don’t think we’ve seen it yet. 2022 gave me hope but it’s clear now that it was simply a mirage.
I understand all that you said. I am not sopporting Radadive Vivek. I am supporting Perry, Christie and the team You underestimating how high I have set MY bar. It could be higher than yours.
Jalen Rose’s lines are so clean it looks like his hair and beard are painted on.
They are.
Welp, the Kings’ front office FAFO with Hali didn’t they? Eastern Conference Finals MVP. GREAT JOB TO VIVEK AND MONTE!
Vivek be like it doesn’t matter what players we pass up on the draft or what players we trade or gave away. It doesn’t even matter if there’s even a plan or goal for the NBA basketball team. As long he’s entertained and boast his egos here and there. When he’s bored, he’s still going to able to sell the team for a profit.
Actually Siakim !
Correction: ECF MVP runner up, all star, and starting point guard in finals.
Yeah it would of been great to get Siakim
Two things.
Market size is irrelevant.
Competence matters.
The first is great news for Kings fans.
The second is an unfortunate reality for Kings fans.
Cue the commenters with their myriad of excuses for this sh!t show and telling others how to fan.
Big congrats to the Pacers and Tyrese. That’s a fun team to watch and he’s made the players around him better. They get after it on defense. Maybe not the most talented or long defensive team, but the effort and effectiveness no defense are there. They’re going to get smoked in the finals, but good on them for getting there.
They are in the east, congratulations but they will get destroyed by OKC. You could make the case 5-6 teams in the west would beat the Pacers.
Denver – for sure
Clippers – definitely would be the Favorite
Minnesota – ditto
Warriors assuming a healthy Curry
Lakers – Again the would be favorite.
Houston – may not be the favorite but I’ll take Houston in that series.
OKC sweeps this one and it will be OKC’s defense that makes this a shellacking.
Aside from OKC, none of the other teams you mentioned in the West are juggernauts or would be heavy faves over Indy.
-Clips? Lol. Harden in the Finals would be running on fumes and Leonard would be hobbling around on his bum knee.
-Den with Jokic can accomplish anything but they have no depth whilst Indy is one of the deepest teams in the NBA. That matters.
-The Lakers suck.
-Hou is still very green.
-Duds don’t have much outside Curry, Jimmy is a walking injury.
I’d take Indy and their depth over those teams in a 7 game series. OKC is the exception of course.
Ok when OKC sweeps Indy you’ll have to reconsider, Remember Denver took them to 7, Minnesota won a game and I think the Warriors who barely got by Houston would have beaten Minnesota with Curry. Y
you point to all the flaws of these other teams and don’t mention the limitations of Indy. Also remember Denver had a very difficult time with the Clippers.
You might also consider this. In four meetings between these teams over the past two seasons, Haliburton has averaged just 12 points per game, his lowest average against any opponent. When guarded by Dort, Halliburton scored just 8 points in 122 matchups and got just 10 shot attempts. He also almost never got to the foul line getting less than 1 attempt on average per game.
Congrats to Hali. I’m still a fan and have his Kings city edition hanging proudly in my closet. Seeing OKC and Indy making it to the Finals will hopefully provide some insightfulness for our new front office. I don’t have my hopes up.
As for the Kangz. It’s gonna be a loooooong summer. No pick, no cap space, no tradable assets. Good times.
Well, we have tradable assets, it’s just the return that is bleak. We’ll find out very quickly if Perry is shadow vivek or a real gm by the end of the season.
Hey we got the #42 pick!!
I wonder how much that will be sold for?
I must admit to having this morbid yet hilarious thought that the Kings selling the 42nd pick for cash while not having a first round pick would be the perfect capper to this season.
Cash Considerations is a Kangz legend. He even managed to bridge the Maloof-Vivek ownership boundary.
What I find compelling is that the Kings have traded for him numerous times, but he never gets playing time and ends up elsewhere in free agency, before the team eventually trades for him again. They must be putting in a lot of work developing Mr. Considerations. Maybe this year he can crack the rotation. He’s a PG, right? Kings need a guy who can drop some dimes.
Maybe an idea for new THK merchandise? A Cash Considerations jersey. He can have a dollar sign (or a cent sign, maybe, in penny-pinching Vivek’s case) instead of a number on the front/back. I’d buy one.
Nope, Cash Considerations is a 6’2” SG with weak handles and no defense.
Trade it for Joe Ingles. Maybe even get Kelly Olynyk.
please know I don’t mean that at all.
Hey, 42 is the answer
So much this. I expect the Kings to deal some or all of their future firsts for someone old, damaged, with a “big” name or with nice counting stats, who isn’t actually that good (see: DDR, LaVine).
Think Trae Young, Zion, Jrue Holiday, Miles Bridges, etc. Something completely brain dead that will top the team out as a first round loser.
Hoping to soon see a finals series between a Fox-led Spurs team and a Hali-led Pacers team. That would emphasize what a total clown show Vivek’s ownership has been and still is.
Senior PG Alijah Martin is projected to go in the middle of the 2nd round.
https://bsky.app/profile/jameshamnba.bsky.social/post/3lqljeqg2ek2j
NaPG
Could be second round picks, likely this is just Summer League (not California Classic) try outs.
@UtQ: You got any sleeper picks for PG?
Outside of the lottery picks, I don’t see much I like from the PG position. The mid-to-late 1st is filled with long athletic wings though.
If the Kings were to trade up
Middle of the 1st: I like Coward (SF), Bryant (SF), Powell (SF), and Newell (PF)
Late 1st: I like Pendy (PF) and Fleming (PF)
I think if the Kings don’t make any other moves prior to the draft, at 42…the Kings select Javon Small, PG from WVA.
I saw a trade the other day where the Pels get Monk a 2027 first and our 42 second for Herb Jones. I wound do that in a heartbeat but there goes #42, Oh well.
PS Can you imagine Ellis Murray and Jones together. Who is going to score. Get Tre Jones as your point guard, he also can defend. Even if Lavine and Sabonis start nobody still can’t score. I understand that’s six players. Sorry but IMO Lavine goes to the bench, Now you have Tre Jones, Ellis, Murray, Herb Jones and Sabonis. You might start Lavine at the beginning for Ellis but those first 5 would be great at the end especially if and when you are ahead.
I’d be down for that as well. I like Herb!
Make it so, but I don’t think there is anyway in hell that the Pels do that. Jones is arguably their best value to contract and is the kind of guy they probably want to keep. I would imagine they’d prefer to move anyone else on the roster, with the exception of maybe Murphy III, before they move Jones.
Dammit Adam…i was really enjoying my late breakfast and coffee until you pulled this stunt. You just showed Vivek a path to acquiring…Chris Paul. Draft a PG and sign CP3 to “mentor” DC and rookie PG. Now, lemme clean up this vomit from the table.
I do not have it in me to be a fan of this team anymore. I have reached a severe level of hatred towards them that I honestly wished they left in 2012 or never moved to Sacramento. Vivek is truly the worst owner in history, price gouging this good city. The money wasted could be used on helping the homeless and other things Sac can improve on. Instead, it is wasted on this joke of a franchise. I may not live in Sac anymore but my family does.
I will return when Vivek sells. I live in the Midwest and will support the Pacers. No incentive to watch the Kings. You have to pay me to give them any attention. The barrage of stupid decisions, the refusal to tank this year, and Hali trade, truly did it. Last straw.
Sacramento deserves better. Kings fans deserve better. Peace.
Damn man, sorry you feel that way. It sucks that it’s come to this for some of us.
Well…I’m struggling to feel bad for you.
You don’t live in CA, you don’t have to watch the Kings play, you get to watch the Pacers play, AND you’re not giving your time away thinking about this sad-sack of a team. Frankly sir, I’m jealous.
Don’t forget to come hang out with us from time to time, you know…like a wellness check.
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