Kings Season and Home Opening Games Announced

Per Cunningham, the Kings will open up in Phoenix against the Suns on October 22. Like Sacramento, Phoenix endured a tumultuous 2024-25 season that saw a very talented, expensive team miss the playoffs entirely. 

The Suns have undergone a near complete makeover this summer, trading Kevin Durant and waiving Bradley Beal. Phoenix retooled around star guard Devin Booker by adding Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, and 10th overall pick Kaman Malauach in return for sending Durant to the Houston Rockets. They also traded for Mark Williams, fully re-stocking their center rotation. 

Phoenix has also overhauled their coaching staff and front office, naming former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott head Coach and naming Brian Gregory their new General Manager. They also traded up to the top of the second round to select Rasheer Fleming, considered by many to be a first round talent. 

The home opener comes two days later, when Sacramento takes on the Utah Jazz at the Golden 1 Center. 

Utah finished with the worst record in the NBA last season, sporting a paltry 17-65 record that saw them rest many key veterans down the stretch, culminating in a fine for violating the league’s participation policy. 

Despite sporting the worst record in the league, Utah slid to 5th in the Draft Lottery. They added the talented but controversial Ace Bailey with the 5th pick, and took March Madness hero Walter Clayton Jr. with the 18th pick. 

The perennially future-focused Jazz also traded guard Colin Sexton to Charlotte this summer, clearing the way for Clayton and second year guard Isaiah Collier. Utah will once again be a frontrunner for the worst record in the NBA this coming season.

Sacramento’s third game comes on Sunday, October 26 when they host their longtime rival Los Angeles Lakers. 

Los Angeles had a pedestrian offseason in a vacuum, but (for the most part) made the most of the limited resources at their disposal. Their roster suffered a blow when Dorian Finney-Smith left LA for the Houston Rockets, which reportedly came with a less-than-ideal parting of ways. 

However, Los Angeles rebounded by poaching Jake LaRavia from the Kings and signing De’Andre Ayton after he was bought out by the Portland Trail Blazers. Neither of these moves are home runs by any means - Ayton is a particularly high-variance piece of their proverbial puzzle - but both represent solid values at their respective prices. 

The Lakers also signed Marcus Smart after his buyout from the Washington Wizards. Smart, the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year, has played a combined 54 games over the last two seasons and needs to simply be available before First Take can claim Smart was the missing piece to make the Lakers title contenders. 

For a team that has undergone significant changes (and that may expect more in the weeks leading up to opening night), the Kings enjoy a reasonable opening schedule. 

Phoenix experienced significant changes this summer, losing 3 of their top 5 in minutes played last season, and bringing at least four new players into their rotation (Green, Brooks, Williams, and Malauach). 

As mentioned, Utah is coming off a league-worst record and traded a starting guard away for effectively nothing this summer. Barring leaps from their young pieces (Kyle Filipowski did show out in Summer League), there is no indication that this team will be a particularly daunting opponent. 

The Lakers represent a challenge, coming off a 50-win season and welcoming a svelte Luka Doncic back for his first full season in the purple and gold. However, they are replacing several key spots with Ayton in the paint, LaRavia on the wing, and Smart also in the fold, which may lead to some early bumps as J.J. Redick gets a feel for his new roster. 

This is a sight for sore eyes for a Kings team that has overhauled their coaching staff and likely installed a mostly new system. It will almost certainly take some time to click, and there could absolutely be worse teams to open the schedule with. 

The remainder of Sacramento’s schedule should be released in the coming days.