With a new coach, a revamped roster and a beam that shoots to outer space after every win, the Kings are pushing toward snapping a 16-year absence from the NBA playoffs this season -- and it appears they’re on the right track so far as the season reaches the halfway point.
Sacramento currently has a 21-18 record on the 2022-23 NBA season and sits fifth in the tight Western Conference. Oh, and in a division with the reigning-champion Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Phoenix Suns, the Kings are in first place atop that list.
Who would’ve thought?
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But despite being the “Kings” of the Pacific, pun intended, odds provided by our partner, Points Bet, show the Kings have +500 odds at winning the division. The Warriors are favored to win the division (+150), followed by the Suns (+300) and Clippers (+300). The Lakers are the only team with worse odds than the Kings (+2000).
As of now, the Clippers (22-21) are just one game behind the Kings, the Suns (21-21) are 1.5 games back and the Warriors (20-21) are two games back. LeBron James and the Lakers, meanwhile, are 12th in the Western Conference and are three games behind Sacramento.
It's interesting to see Sacramento's odds despite leading the other teams in both the division and the conference. But it's nothing the Kings aren't used to.
Plus, there's still plenty of hoops to be played, and the West truly is anyone's game.
NBA
The Kings have built and brought a winning culture back to Sactown behind the efforts of star duo De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. Thanks to key offseason additions like Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk, drafting rookie Keegan Murray and the championship expertise of coach Mike Brown, the Kings' hopes of reaching the playoffs soon could become a reality.
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The odds might not be in their favor, but the momentum is. They'll need to continue to push through to the end and light their victory beam plenty more times before any thought of glimpsing the postseason.
Editor's note: All odds are provided by our partner, PointsBet. PointsBet is our Official Sports Betting Partner and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on PointsBet for the first time after clicking our links.