The Sacramento Kings Race To The Playoffs Is About To Test The True Power Of The Victory Beam

Rocky Widner. Getty Images.

Let me start this off by saying this is NOT a jinx. I want that on record. As someone who has been pulling for the Kings since October and has been a believer in The Power Of The Beam since its inception, we need to talk about what is on the verge of happening. Kings fans have waiting a lonnnnnnnggggg ass time to be in this position, so I feel as though they should get the proper amount of publicity. You're hearing about the Nuggets, the Grizzlies, the new look Suns, shit even the Warriors are back from the dead and are about to get Steph back this weekend.

Meanwhile, the Kings just keep doing there thing. While some may have been waiting for their drop in the standings after a hot start, it simply hasn't happened. We're 61 games into their season and the Kings sit at 36-25, owner of the 3 seed in the West (up 3 on PHX) and trail the Grizzlies by just 2 games for a top 2 seed. Not only that, but they split the season series 2-2 with MEM, and since both are currently leading their division, the tie breaker becomes Conference record, which the Kings at the moment own (24-13 vs 20-16). So, if for whatever reason this holds true and the Kings tie the Grizzlies in record, they're the 2 seed. 

Think about that for a second. There's a legit possibility that THE SACRAMENTO KINGS could finish an entire NBA season as a top 2 seed in the Western Conference. That's pretty wild considering most people thought they'd win around 33 games this season. As a reminder, they already have 36 with 21 games to play.

In terms of where the Kings stand in the league, it's impossible to not be impressed. I'd say the sample size is large enough to where you can believe in these numbers, and they are why Kings fans should feel incredible right now

- 1st in offense

- 21st in defense (ok this isn't great)

- 6th in net rating

- 4th in AST%

- 1st in TS%

Against the best teams in the West, the Kings have held their own (3-3). As long as they can tighten up their defense when it matters most, we may finally see their playoff drought come to an end. 

Here's the thing though, it's not going to be easy. This is where the power of the beam needs to do its thing. As of today, the Kings have the 3rd toughest remaining schedule in the NBA'

The big matchups are the 2 games left with PHX. Already down 0-2 in that H2H matchup, the Kings have just a 3 game lead over PHX in the Pacific division. They also still have DEN/BOS/MIL left, who are arguably the 3 best teams in the NBA, not to mention the red hot Knicks. The good news I suppose is PHX is right there with them in terms of their tough remaining schedule, so that tells me the final H2H meetings could be rather important for both sides. 

Think of how awesome it was when the Seattle Mariners finally broke through and made the postseason

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I want this exact moment/feeling not just for the Kings, but for Kings fans. You could make the case that no franchise's fans have suffered more over the last 16ish years than Kings fans. Shit, even Timberwolves fans got to see their team in the playoffs recently. When you're currently dealing with a drought that looks like this

I don't know how anyone couldn't be rooting for them to break it. 

There have been a few surprise teams this year, but none bigger than the Kings in my opinion. I'm sure everyone thought that even though they got off to a good start, that eventually the Kings would do Kings shit and mess it all up. Credit Mike Brown for changing the culture, and credit guys like De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, Malik Monk etc for all taking a leap. The front office made solid moves bringing in Kevin Huerter and drafting Davion Mitchell and Keegan Murray. Nothing about what we're seeing from the Kings right now doesn't feel sustainable, and for a fanbase that has been waiting and waiting for a team like this, it's cool to see it actually happen.

The Victory Beam has gotten them this far, and currently winners of 4 straight, it looks like things aren't slowing down any time soon. We're inching closer and closer to the point where Kings fans can stop worrying about a Top 6 seed and actually start focusing on homecourt (maybe even in the first 2 rounds). 

The fact that I could even type that sentence on March 3rd is very cool. 

Light the Beam.