Season Wrap: The 2025-26 Sacramento Kings

  • By Keston Paul

    Last Updated on May 1, 2026 2:00 am by Keston Paul | Published: May 1, 2026

    There were not many #LightTheBeam moments for the Kings this season, as frankly, there were not many reasons to have a positive outlook about how things played out. Still, a season like this one deserves significant discussion and maybe lottery luck falls their way, hopefully.

    How’d It Go?

    By the time we got to December 1, the Kings had a 5-16 record and were the No. 14 seed in the West, techically tied for No. 13 with the Clippers. Unlike the Clippers, they didn’t have a Kawhi Leonard to become the best player in the NBA for a couple of months and rescue them from the doldrums. They were 8-26 by the start of the new year (January 1), and at the All-Star break, a 12-45 record had them in the mix for the worst record in the NBA. After the trade deadline, pretty much every team outside of the Play-In spots leaned into the tank, and while the Kings did appear to do so briefly, they didn’t commit to it as heavily as the teams around them.

    While the Kings certainly came into this season looking to compete, there is an argument that the full pivot toward “racing to the bottom” when they were clearly out of the Play-In race would have been a smart move in what is expected to be a generational draft class. Despite the flattened odds for the bottom three, the worse your record is, the higher your draft floor becomes, so there is still some “value” in ensuring your worst lottery outcome is No. 5 (for the team with the worst record) or No. 6 (second-worst record) and so on. However, the Kings won five games in March and then three more games in April, finishing with a 22-60 record, tied with the Jazz, leading to a tiebreaker which they lost.

    That means the Kings ended up with the fifth-best odds at the No. 1 pick and a draft floor of No. 9 if four teams were to jump them in the NBA Draft Lottery, even if that is improbable. Whatever your opinions might be on tanking, for a franchise like the Kings, who are not likely to attract big free agents or be able to trade for a megastar and convince them to stay, building wisely through the draft is integral to success. De’Aaron Fox (No. 5 pick) and Domantas Sabonis (via a trade with a player who was a No. 12 pick, Tyrese Haliburton), alongside other pieces, produced the Kings’ most memorable season in recent memory, and that was with some mishaps along the way in their decision-making with draft picks and team building.

    They could obviously still jump in the lottery, making everything completely fine on paper, but the process seemed a bit flawed.

    Coaching

    The Kings finished with the joint-fourth-worst record in the NBA this season, 22-60. They had an offensive rating of 110.6 (26th), a defensive rating of 120.3 (28th) and a net rating of minus-9.7 (28th). A pace of 100.12 was 17th.

    One interesting narrative was coach Doug Christie’s commentary that the team needing to play better defense, but rarely giving their best perimeter defender, Keon Ellis, consistent opportunities.

    After Ellis was traded to Cleveland, he became an important part of their rotation, so it becomes more odd in retrospect that Ellis could not nail down a consistent role for a much worse team.

    Then, there was the incident where Christie made a coaching decision that caused an investigation into tanking, but that was cleared up as just being an egregious error.

    After all of that, we were told that the Kings intend to retain Christie next season.

    From Jason Anderson’s article, it was stated that injuries to the team’s veterans made it difficult for Christie’s coaching to be assessed, but there were positives to note about his connection with the young players and the locker room in general, despite the struggles. The article mentioned that Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis never played a game together (due to injuries) and that the team had used 35 different starting lineups prior to the regular-season finale. There was also a reminder that in his 51-game interim season in 2024-25, Christie led the team to a 27-24 record, which is why he earned the full-time job.

    Overall, I would say there are some fair critiques of Christie, but the reasoning given in the article makes sense on some level. If the Kings move toward a rebuild, Christie’s relationship with the young players should be quite variable, and despite some questions about the team’s process toward the draft, Christie should ensure that the young players do not develop bad habits, instilling a winning mindset and culture, even if the results do not always match.

    The Players

    Domantas Sabonis
    C, Sacramento Kings
    SeasonTeamGPGSMPG FGMFGAFG% FTMFTAFT% 3PTM3PTA3PT% PTSREBAST STLBLKTO
    25-26 SAC 19 16 29.7 6.3 11.6 54.3 2.9 4.1 72.7 0.3 1.4 18.5 15.8 11.4 4.1 0.9 0.2 2.7
    24-25 SAC 70 70 34.7 7.5 12.8 59.0 3.1 4.1 75.4 0.9 2.2 41.7 19.1 13.9 6.0 0.7 0.4 2.9
    23-24 SAC 82 82 35.7 7.7 13.0 59.4 3.6 5.1 70.4 0.4 1.1 37.9 19.4 13.7 8.2 0.9 0.6 3.3

    ADP: 17.1/12.0 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 333/341 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 69/99 (8/9-cat)

    Sabonis initially suffered a left knee partial meniscus tear in mid-November, missing 27 games before a return in mid-January. From there, he suited up in eight games and made his last appearance on February 4 before undergoing season-ending surgery after the All-Star break.

    Sabonis played a career-low 19 games, while his 15.8 PPG, 11.4 RPG and 4.1 APG were all his lowest averages in those categories since 2018-19. Sabonis turns 30 years old in May and will have an offseason to recuperate and try to bounce back in 2026-27, possibly with a change of scenery as well.

    On a per-game basis for 9-cat, Sabonis was a disappointment in the games that he played. He was less of a dribble-handoff hub as the Kings resorted to some weird turn-taking offense that clearly did not result in winning. Most of Sabonis’ value (on-court and fantasy) is derived from his play in DHOs, so you would have to hope that if he is traded, Sabonis should be utilized better to complement his strengths.

    Zach LaVine
    SG, Sacramento Kings
    SeasonTeamGPGSMPG FGMFGAFG% FTMFTAFT% 3PTM3PTA3PT% PTSREBAST STLBLKTO
    25-26 SAC 39 37 31.4 6.7 14.0 47.9 3.2 3.6 88.0 2.5 6.5 39.0 19.2 2.8 2.3 0.7 0.3 1.9
    24-25 SAC 74 74 35.2 8.4 16.5 51.1 3.2 3.9 82.5 3.2 7.2 44.6 23.3 4.3 4.2 0.8 0.2 2.8
    23-24 CHI 25 23 34.9 6.8 15.0 45.2 3.5 4.1 85.4 2.4 6.8 34.9 19.5 5.2 3.9 0.8 0.3 2.1

    ADP: 61.6/62.0 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 237/241 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 113/122 (8/9-cat)

    LaVine’s 2025-26 season was cut short by right hand surgery in mid-February, limiting him to 39 games after disappointing fantasy production. He opened the season with a hot run of 27, 25, 22 and 30 points — giving you about one week to sell high — but it mostly went downhill from there. LaVine is no stranger to “down years” and bounce-back campaigns, but his 19.2 points were his fewest since the 2017-18 season, and a 52.0 percent conversion rate on his twos also stood out as his lowest since 2019-20 despite his 3-point percentage remaining steady.

    LaVine won’t get the same money on the open market, and at age 31, a rejuvenation in 2026-27 could be a little more difficult than it has been in past years. Maybe the rumored change of scenery will help, but he could also end up in a worse role somewhere as well. Although, it is unlikely that a competitive team could fit his money into their books.

    DeMar DeRozan
    SF, Sacramento Kings
    SeasonTeamGPGSMPG FGMFGAFG% FTMFTAFT% 3PTM3PTA3PT% PTSREBAST STLBLKTO
    25-26 SAC 77 77 31.2 6.5 13.1 49.7 4.9 5.6 86.8 0.6 1.9 32.0 18.4 2.9 4.1 1.0 0.3 1.2
    24-25 SAC 77 77 35.9 8.1 17.0 47.7 4.9 5.7 85.7 1.1 3.3 32.8 22.2 3.9 4.4 0.8 0.4 1.4
    23-24 CHI 79 79 37.8 8.2 17.2 48.0 6.6 7.7 85.3 0.9 2.8 33.3 24.0 4.3 5.3 1.1 0.6 1.7

    ADP: 64.4/44.0 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 48/39 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 98/76 (8/9-cat)

    As a positive, DeRozan kept his run of elite health going, but his 31.2 MPG were his fewest since his rookie season in 2009-10. That naturally led to reduced counting stats (aside from improved steals per game), as his scoring average was the was the fifth-lowest of his 17-year career.

    Part of this was the Kings going into somewhat of a preservation mode with their veterans after the All-Star break. After the All-Star break, DeRozan averaged 28.2 MPG for 17.7 points (.504 FG%, .878 FT%), 0.3 triples, 2.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.4 blocks for No. 102/104 (8-cat/9-cat) value per game across 21 appearances. However, he did have a huge game here and there, including the three-game run of 39, 27 and 41 points in the middle of March.

    Overall, DeRozan likely should not be a lead offensive option anymore, as even before the All-Star break, he was set for a muted offensive season. His health remains a plus, but his per-game upside may not be what it once was.

    Keegan Murray
    PF, Sacramento Kings
    SeasonTeamGPGSMPG FGMFGAFG% FTMFTAFT% 3PTM3PTA3PT% PTSREBAST STLBLKTO
    25-26 SAC 23 22 34.5 5.5 13.0 42.0 1.7 2.1 77.6 1.3 4.9 27.7 14.0 5.7 1.7 1.0 1.6 1.2
    24-25 SAC 76 76 34.3 4.8 10.8 44.4 0.8 0.9 83.3 2.0 5.9 34.3 12.4 6.7 1.4 0.8 0.9 0.8
    23-24 SAC 77 77 33.6 5.8 12.7 45.4 1.3 1.6 83.1 2.4 6.6 35.8 15.2 5.5 1.7 1.0 0.8 0.8

    ADP: 117.2/135.1 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 322/311 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 110/90 (8/9-cat)

    This is just a sneak peek of the Season Wrap. The entire roster is covered, as well as the Fantasy Star, Letdown, One to Watch and One Burning Question for this team.ย You’ll need to have an Ethos 360, All-Sport or NBA FantasyPass membership. Click here to learn more and sign up!ย Premium Access Required

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    May 1, 2026, 2:00 am