Sacramento Kings News

Home

Quizzes

Watch

Newsletter

Apr 11, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Zach LaVine (8) before the game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

NBA Experts Predict Sacramento Kings' 2025-26 Record

Originally posted on Sacramento Kings on SI
By Will Zimmerle | Last updated Aug 27, 2025 4:47 PM ET

The Sacramento Kings came into the offseason with a long to-do list, including adding a starting-caliber point guard, more length and athleticism, and ideally getting younger.

While they brought in Dennis Schröder, there haven't been any other big moves to quickly reshape the roster for next season, which has led to very low expectations from national media heading into the 2025-26 season.

ESPN released their predictions for records and standings across the league next season, and they were far from kind for where they slotted the Kings. Sacramento is predicted to finish the season with a record of 37-45, good for 12th in the Western Conference.

That's a tough spot for the KIngs to finish, but isn't far off from what others around the league are saying as well. There is no denying that the Kings have talent on the roster, as Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan, and Zach LaVine are all All-Star caliber players, but the fit of the entire team doesn't make sense going into the year.

The glut of guards makes everything difficult and is generally the talking point about the team from the national media's perspective, and rightfully so.

Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

Between LaVine, Schröder, Malik Monk, Keon Ellis, Devin Carter, and even Nique Clifford, they are an extremely guard-heavy team that could once again struggle against teams with more length and athleticism. And that's before the potential signing of Russell Westbrook, who is still being rumored alongside the Kings.

To make matters worse for Sacramento, they are in danger of getting passed by multiple teams that were below them in the standings last season. The Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, and Portland Trail Blazers were all behind the Kings in the standings last year, but are slotted to finish 8th, 9th, and 11th, respectively.

The Kings were supposed to be on the come up after their playoff loss to the Golden State Warriors, but instead took steps back each season and once again have a long hill to climb in order to get back to NBA relevance.

It's a hard spot for the Kings to be in. They have the talent to compete on a night-to-night basis, but not enough to compete over the long stretch of the season. That will likely leave them in the middle of the pack, or as these rankings suggest, at the bottom of the pack.

But not at the very bottom. Looking at the whole league, and not just the Western Conference, the Kings are predicted to finish with the ninth-worst record in the league. That puts them in the dreaded middle zone of the NBA, where they'll need luck to win the lottery.

All of this could be for nothing, as these types of predictions always have their mistakes. We could look back at this during or after the season and laugh at everyone who thought the Kings would be bad, but that feels unlikely at this point in the offseason. If nothing else, it's a good barometer to confirm that the national media isn't feeling great about the Kings heading into next season.

This article first appeared on Sacramento Kings on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: