Kings pick just got much closer to #1.

[KGBirdBias]

WOW, the NBA is crazy. Boogie to the Warriors for 1 year.

Ainge, time to put that call in to the Pelicans. :-)

[Moranis]

How exactly did Sacramento's odds get worse?  The Lakers were better than them last year.  If anything this puts Cleveland in contention to be worse than the Kings.   

Last season the Kings and Lakers split the regular season 2-2. Two losses are key when it comes to seeding.

Teams that had a worst record than Sacramento-
Suns (added Ayton, Bridges, and Ariza)
Grizzlies (added Jackson and should have Gasol and Conley back)
Dallas (added Doncic and Jordan)

The only teams I see clearly worse than Sacramento is Atlanta and New York (if Porizingis is out for the majority of the season). I think Kings are on par with the Magic and Bulls, but those teams play in the EC, which will give them the benefit of a few extra wins.

Suns also lost Len, Ennis, and Payton.  Obviously Ariza is a nice veteran presence and Ayton (and to a lesser extent Bridges) is a great prospect, but the Suns are going to be terrible.  They have no PG on the roster and other than Ariza have no credible defenders (and he is getting old).  They are a mismatch of players and I just don't like how they currently fit together.  I just don't see them being better than the Kings, who probably will have the rookie of the year in Bagley, who have a much more cohesive backcourt with Fox and Hield, and I like the fit with WCS, Bogdanovic, and Bagley.  Who knows if they get anything from Giles or if Ska and Jackson continue to develop. 

Dallas is going to be a mess again.  Doncic is NBA ready as rookies go, but still a rookie, but I'm not sure Smith and Doncic is really a good fit.  Jordan is a shell of himself and one of the worst offensive players in league history.  The Mavericks are going to be awful. 

Now if Conley and Gasol are back and healthy the Grizzlies should be better than the Kings, but they are very thin and lack depth so any injury set back and they will once again be a bottom 5 team. 

The Bulls, Nets, Knicks, Magic, and Hawks could all pretty easily be worse than the Kings, though as you say they are in the East so who knows.  I also think there is a real chance that both Cleveland and Charlotte throw in the towel and tank.  Charlotte, especially, has to do something with Walker before he leaves next summer and they get nothing for him.

I don't really get how you can say Dallas will be awful and in the same ballpark as Sacramento. Their centers last year are not even worth mentioning and at worst they got an average starting center. That is a massive upgrade. Doncic will win them a few games. And yes Memphis could be bad if their two best players get injured again, but so could every team in the NBA. This post really reeks of envisioning the worst possible situation for every other lottery team and the best possible outcome for the kings.

I think the Kings will win 30 games. A modest 3 win improvement from last year.

[KGBirdBias]

We may have to throw that MLE at Dwight Howard just to compete with the Warriors.

[bknova]

How exactly did Sacramento's odds get worse?  The Lakers were better than them last year.  If anything this puts Cleveland in contention to be worse than the Kings.   

Last season the Kings and Lakers split the regular season 2-2. Two losses are key when it comes to seeding.

Teams that had a worst record than Sacramento-
Suns (added Ayton, Bridges, and Ariza)
Grizzlies (added Jackson and should have Gasol and Conley back)
Dallas (added Doncic and Jordan)

The only teams I see clearly worse than Sacramento is Atlanta and New York (if Porizingis is out for the majority of the season). I think Kings are on par with the Magic and Bulls, but those teams play in the EC, which will give them the benefit of a few extra wins.

Suns also lost Len, Ennis, and Payton.  Obviously Ariza is a nice veteran presence and Ayton (and to a lesser extent Bridges) is a great prospect, but the Suns are going to be terrible.  They have no PG on the roster and other than Ariza have no credible defenders (and he is getting old).  They are a mismatch of players and I just don't like how they currently fit together.  I just don't see them being better than the Kings, who probably will have the rookie of the year in Bagley, who have a much more cohesive backcourt with Fox and Hield, and I like the fit with WCS, Bogdanovic, and Bagley.  Who knows if they get anything from Giles or if Ska and Jackson continue to develop. 

Dallas is going to be a mess again.  Doncic is NBA ready as rookies go, but still a rookie, but I'm not sure Smith and Doncic is really a good fit.  Jordan is a shell of himself and one of the worst offensive players in league history.  The Mavericks are going to be awful. 

Now if Conley and Gasol are back and healthy the Grizzlies should be better than the Kings, but they are very thin and lack depth so any injury set back and they will once again be a bottom 5 team. 

The Bulls, Nets, Knicks, Magic, and Hawks could all pretty easily be worse than the Kings, though as you say they are in the East so who knows.  I also think there is a real chance that both Cleveland and Charlotte throw in the towel and tank.  Charlotte, especially, has to do something with Walker before he leaves next summer and they get nothing for him.

I don't really get how you can say Dallas will be awful and in the same ballpark as Sacramento. Their centers last year are not even worth mentioning and at worst they got an average starting center. That is a massive upgrade. Doncic will win them a few games. And yes Memphis could be bad if their two best players get injured again, but so could every team in the NBA. This post really reeks of envisioning the worst possible situation for every other lottery team and the best possible outcome for the kings.

I think the Kings will win 30 games. A modest 3 win improvement from last year.

Having to play all of those teams in the west 4 times, they are gonna get pummeled.  That Kings pick is looking mighty mighty tasty right now.

[footey]

How exactly did Sacramento's odds get worse?  The Lakers were better than them last year.  If anything this puts Cleveland in contention to be worse than the Kings.   

Last season the Kings and Lakers split the regular season 2-2. Two losses are key when it comes to seeding.

Teams that had a worst record than Sacramento-
Suns (added Ayton, Bridges, and Ariza)
Grizzlies (added Jackson and should have Gasol and Conley back)
Dallas (added Doncic and Jordan)

The only teams I see clearly worse than Sacramento is Atlanta and New York (if Porizingis is out for the majority of the season). I think Kings are on par with the Magic and Bulls, but those teams play in the EC, which will give them the benefit of a few extra wins.

Suns also lost Len, Ennis, and Payton.  Obviously Ariza is a nice veteran presence and Ayton (and to a lesser extent Bridges) is a great prospect, but the Suns are going to be terrible.  They have no PG on the roster and other than Ariza have no credible defenders (and he is getting old).  They are a mismatch of players and I just don't like how they currently fit together.  I just don't see them being better than the Kings, who probably will have the rookie of the year in Bagley, who have a much more cohesive backcourt with Fox and Hield, and I like the fit with WCS, Bogdanovic, and Bagley.  Who knows if they get anything from Giles or if Ska and Jackson continue to develop. 

Dallas is going to be a mess again.  Doncic is NBA ready as rookies go, but still a rookie, but I'm not sure Smith and Doncic is really a good fit.  Jordan is a shell of himself and one of the worst offensive players in league history.  The Mavericks are going to be awful. 

Now if Conley and Gasol are back and healthy the Grizzlies should be better than the Kings, but they are very thin and lack depth so any injury set back and they will once again be a bottom 5 team. 

The Bulls, Nets, Knicks, Magic, and Hawks could all pretty easily be worse than the Kings, though as you say they are in the East so who knows.  I also think there is a real chance that both Cleveland and Charlotte throw in the towel and tank.  Charlotte, especially, has to do something with Walker before he leaves next summer and they get nothing for him.

I don't really get how you can say Dallas will be awful and in the same ballpark as Sacramento. Their centers last year are not even worth mentioning and at worst they got an average starting center. That is a massive upgrade. Doncic will win them a few games. And yes Memphis could be bad if their two best players get injured again, but so could every team in the NBA. This post really reeks of envisioning the worst possible situation for every other lottery team and the best possible outcome for the kings.

I think the Kings will win 30 games. A modest 3 win improvement from last year.

Having to play all of those teams in the west 4 times, they are gonna get pummeled.  That Kings pick is looking mighty mighty tasty right now.

Doesn’t change perception of draft being weak especially for bigs.