{"id":222367,"date":"2026-03-16T17:44:49","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T17:44:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/222367\/"},"modified":"2026-03-16T17:44:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T17:44:49","slug":"the-kings-continue-to-fall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/222367\/","title":{"rendered":"The Kings continue to fall"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Sacramento Kings\u2019 next truly important date on their schedule won\u2019t be until May 10th, when the NBA Draft Lottery takes place, but they are finishing the season strong.<\/p>\n<p>Sacramento (18-51) has won two straight games (four of its past five), with nearly a quarter of its wins this season having taken place over the past seven days.<\/p>\n<p>While the Kings playing their best basketball of the season is a positive for a roster that is currently depleted by injuries and reliant on a young core, is it possible that the wins are arriving at a bad time?<\/p>\n<p>During this four-of-five-win stretch, Sacramento has fallen from the top odds in the NBA Draft Lottery to fourth, causing a 4% drop in chances of securing a top-four pick.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a look at how things are shaping up for the Kings and other teams hoping for a change of fortune this offseason.<\/p>\n<p>Tankathon Update: March 16, 2026<\/p>\n<p><img data-perfmatters-preload=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-62255\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-15-at-10.08.29-PM-300x89.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"779\" height=\"231\"  \/><\/p>\n<p>How The Odds &amp; NBA Draft Lottery Work<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"43\" data-end=\"485\">The NBA Draft Lottery is designed to give the league\u2019s worst teams the best chance at landing the top pick, while discouraging outright tanking.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"43\" data-end=\"485\">For a team like the Sacramento Kings, lottery odds come into play only if they miss the playoffs and finish in the bottom 14 of the standings.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"43\" data-end=\"485\">The three teams with the worst records each have a 14 percent chance to win the No. 1 overall pick, with odds decreasing incrementally by record.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"487\" data-end=\"800\">If the Kings finish, for example, with the seventh-worst record, they would have a 7.5 percent chance at the top pick and a much higher likelihood of landing somewhere in the middle of the NBA Draft Lottery.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"487\" data-end=\"800\">The NBA Draft Lottery itself only determines the top four picks. After that, selections are ordered by regular-season record.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"802\" data-end=\"1104\">This system means Sacramento can move up, stay roughly where projected, or slide back\u2014sometimes significantly\u2014depending on how the lottery balls bounce. It\u2019s why even small differences in late-season standings matter. One extra win can slightly reduce top-pick odds but also protect against a big drop.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1300\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">For the Kings, who often operate in the league\u2019s competitive middle class, the lottery represents both hope and risk. It\u2019s a reminder that draft position isn\u2019t guaranteed\u2014only probabilities are.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1300\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">That said, it\u2019s in Sacramento\u2019s best interest to lose as many games as possible the rest of the way. Why?<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1300\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">The 2026 NBA Draft is projected to be a top-five-heavy draft, with each of the top-five picks posing as a potential franchise-altering talent.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1300\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, BYU\u2019s AJ Dybantsa, Duke\u2019s Cameron Boozer, North Carolina\u2019s Caleb Wilson, and Houston\u2019s Kingston Flemings could all be donning a Sacramento Kings jersey come NBA Summer League in Las Vegas this June.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1300\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">It all depends on draft position, and if the Kings want to bring in a new face of the franchise, this could be the draft to do so.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1300\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">Sacramento has the seventh-easiest remaining schedule in the NBA, so it will be interesting to see whether they can continue to take advantage of a softer path to the offseason or remain on course for a top-four pick.<\/p>\n<p>More Sacramento Kings content from Sactown Sports<\/p>\n<p>When is the next Sacramento Kings game?<\/p>\n<p>The Sacramento Kings will face old friend De\u2019Aaron Fox and the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night at Golden 1 Center.<\/p>\n<p>San Antonio is 2-0 against the Kings this season, including a 139-122 win over Sacramento in the most recent meeting on February 21st.<\/p>\n<p>Be sure to catch all of the Sacramento Kings vs. San Antonio Spurs action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage beginning at 5:30 PM PT on Game Night before a 7:00 pm PT tip-off from downtown Sacramento.<\/p>\n<p>Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season<\/p>\n<p>Tuesday, March 17th vs. San Antonio Spurs \u2013 7:00 PM PT<br \/>\nThursday, March 19th vs. Philadelphia 76ers \u2013 7:00 PM PT<br \/>\nSunday, March 22nd vs. Brooklyn Nets \u2013 3:00 PM PT<br \/>\nTuesday, March 24th \u2013 @ Charlotte Hornets \u2013 4:00 PM PT<br \/>\nThursday, March 26th \u2013 @ Orlando Magic \u2013 4:00 PM PT<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Thank you for reading\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/sactownsports.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">SactownSports.com<\/a>. Follow us on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Sactown1140\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMMGengsw2Ki2Aw?hl=en-US&amp;gl=US&amp;ceid=US:en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Google News<\/a>, and subscribe to our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/c\/SactownSports1140\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">YouTube<\/a>\u00a0channel.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"twitter-follow-button\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FCartoscelli3\" data-show-count=\"false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Follow @FCartoscelli3<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/sactownsports.com\/newsletters\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SactownSportsEmail-300x250-1.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0 auto;\" class=\"mobile-signup\"\/>\t&#13;<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SactownSportsEmail-830x100-1.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0 auto;\" class=\"desktop-signup\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>                    <script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Sacramento Kings\u2019 next truly important date on their schedule won\u2019t be until May 10th, when the NBA&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":222368,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[121,123,122],"class_list":["post-222367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=222367"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222367\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/222368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=222367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=222367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=222367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}