Sacramento Kings dream, nightmare seeding, matchup scenarios for 2025 NBA Playoffs

03/28/2025 01:54 AM

Ever since the Sacramento Kings surprised the world during the 2022-23 season by snapping their postseason drought and being the league’s darling with their Light The Beam gimmick, they have been itching to reclaim the heights they were once on. Since then, things have gone downhill for the Kings, as for the second consecutive season, they are headed for the play-in tournament, and even that isn’t a guarantee.

At present, the Kings have a 35-37 record, and they are currently in the middle of a losing streak that has Zach LaVine calling out the bad vibes he feels the team is being plagued with. They have lost four straight games, and the schedule ahead of them remains unforgiving.

With the Kings hanging on to a play-in tournament spot for dear life, here is the dream scenario that the Kings will be hoping for and the nightmare outcome that they will be wishing upon their lucky stars to avoid.

Dream scenario: Kings somehow fight their way to a top-eight spot

It might be a bit crazy to suggest that the Kings can make up a 5.5-game deficit in the standings with 10 games remaining in the season, but more far-fetched things have happened in the past. Perhaps the Minnesota Timberwolves or Los Angeles Clippers completely lose the plot and embark on a free-fall in the coming weeks, while the Kings manage to get back on track and rattle off a lengthy winning streak.

That, of course, is a near-implausible scenario. They will only face two tanking teams down the stretch (Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards), with the rest of their matchups coming against teams that are either looking to secure a more favorable playoff position (Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons, and Orlando Magic), a direct rival for the play-in tournament spots (Phoenix Suns and Portland Trail Blazers), or one of the best teams in the league (Cleveland Cavaliers).

With the Kings being stuck in a rut as of late, it’s hard to imagine them suddenly finding a panacea for all their ills and defeating other teams that still have something to play for to end the regular season.

But this is a dream scenario we’re talking about, and anything can happen in dreams. The Kings will have to lock in, however, if they were to make this dream, no matter how improbable, a reality.

For the Kings to have two chances at making it to the playoffs will be quite the incredible outcome for a team that had to navigate the departure of De’Aaron Fox via trade, and having a chance at a first-round matchup against a team not named the Oklahoma City Thunder could fuel dreams of an upset for a Kings franchise that hasn’t made it past the first round since 2004.

Nightmare scenario: Kings fall out of the play-in entirely

The Kings have shown some resiliency by remaining semi-competitive despite losing De’Aaron Fox nearly two months ago in a trade. They also went through another major transition earlier in the season when they fired Mike Brown, the head coach who led the franchise to its first playoff berth since 2006, and replacing him with interim Doug Christie.

However, they have gone just 10-13 since the Fox trade, and Domantas Sabonis’ injury problems in recent weeks have not helped whatsoever in their push to make the playoffs. And given the way things are going, there is a huge chance that the Kings fall out of the play-in tournament picture entirely.

The Phoenix Suns have made up a lot of ground in the play-in race by winning their past four games, while the Kings are in the middle of a four-game rut. The 35-38 Dallas Mavericks can even make it interesting, especially with Anthony Davis suiting back up for the team despite their bleak outlook. Even the Blazers, a team that’s 3.5 games behind the Kings and the Suns for a play-in tournament spot, could play spoiler.

For a team that looked to build a sustainable contender after their breakout campaign in 2023, missing out on the play-in tournament is a major fall-off, a continuation of a worrying downward trend that could have Sacramento back to being the league’s doormat in no time.

While being a lower-seeded playoff team is nothing to write home about, this should at least vindicate the front office’s efforts to field a competitive team in Sacramento. On the bright side, however, they could keep the first-round pick that they owe the Atlanta Hawks if they miss out on the playoffs, which isn’t too bad of an outcome for a team that is in need of an infusion of bright, young talent.

The post Sacramento Kings dream, nightmare seeding, matchup scenarios for 2025 NBA Playoffs appeared first on ClutchPoints.