The Kings hit the bottom of the NBA

In an already very complicated season, Kings gave themselves a brief breath of fresh air in mid-January with a four-game winning streak. But in Sacramento, thinning rarely lasts. Californians quickly plunged back into their mistakes: in the second half of the month, men from Doug Christie they haven’t won a single match and now they have seven defeats in a row…

The latest fell this Thursday against the Sixers, at the end of a cruel scenario: Tyrese Maxey took a shower the hope of kings with the decisive basket a second from the buzzer.

Direct consequence: Sacramento now has a league-worst 12-37 record against the Pelicans. Obviously disappointing results, even if expectations were lowered.

“We’re really not happy”logically throws out Zach Lavin. “We have a bunch of All-Stars, future Hall of Famers, All-NBA players and Olympic gold medalists, former Sixth Man of the Year and great players. But it’s not working, and our results show it. As a team, we don’t like that. We’re going to keep fighting and trying to play.”

Even before the start of this 2025/26 campaign, the Kings’ defensive limitations have been identified. However, especially on offense, Sacramento is disappointing. With Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Domantas Sabonis and Russell Westbrook, the team had enough to knock down a few defenses. Only the reality is quite different: the Kings have the third-worst offense in the NBA, scoring just 109.6 points per 100 possessions.

The future is far from bright

A symbol of an offense struggling to structure itself: the end of the match against Philadelphia. While Sacramento had just gone on an 11–0 run to take a nine-point lead, DeMar DeRozan’s teammates fell short in the fourth quarter, committing seven turnovers in the period.

“We lost a few balls and could have played better in attack”pity the winger. “We gave them too many chances. But we still had a chance to win. It all came down to our ability to limit their possessions and capitalize on ours.”

Alas, Sacramento cracked, like DeMar DeRozan’s missed shot just before Tyrese Maxey’s game-winning shot.

With such a troubling record, the franchise doesn’t have much leverage left other than the hope of making a move at the trade deadline. The departure of DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and/or Domantas Sabonis has been mentioned, especially since the trio is tough: nearly $115 million committed to the payroll, and the results haven’t followed.

“When things don’t go well, they do”breathes DeMar DeRozan to the rumors. “It’s part of the job. You have to keep playing and do your job. Put things aside … and keep loving the sport.”