Closing postseason tickets 6 games early, Sacramento quenched the longest Playoffs thirst in NBA history
After a 16-year wait, the Sacramento Kings finally returned to the Playoffs, and ended their thirst for the longest postseason in the history of four North American professional sports (basketball, baseball, football, and hockey). ice).
Confronting the Portland Trail Blazers this morning (March 30), the Sacramento Kings won an extremely strong victory with a score of 120-80, thereby closing the ticket to the Playoffs round nearly 3 weeks early.
The last time the Kings entered the Playoffs was in the 2005-06 season. At that time, they ranked 8th on the Western chart.
De'Aaron Fox and his teammates could have celebrated earlier if they won on Sunday. But it wasn't until today that it became a reality.
"Breathing a sigh of relief," Fox shared his feeling after a 40-point win over the Blazers to officially return to the Playoffs. Can't get into the Playoffs.
It's great that the team finally broke the tie because 16 years is a very long time. I am happy for the coaching staff, the team leadership, the men who have gone before me and also the fans."
In 16 consecutive seasons of watching the Playoffs at home, the Sacramento Kings have had a lot of changes in personnel, including players and coaches.
Up to this year's pre-season, a total of 11 head coaches and 5 technical directors took turns sitting in two "hot seats". And despite their poor track record, they could not take advantage of the opportunity to find outstanding young talent from the NBA Draft.
The brightest name is probably DeMarcus Cousins, the only Kings player selected to the All-Star and All-NBA during the above period. It wasn't until this year that Sacramento added representatives at the All-Star Game, De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis.
So what caused the Sacramento Kings to reverse from previous seasons? The answer is a successful offseason just before the 2022-23 season.
The first was a blockbuster deal with the Indiana Pacers, exchanging young talent Tyrese Haliburton for versatile bigman Domantas Sabonis. The Kings then appointed a new head coach, Mr. Mike Brown.
Now both of these personnel can be honored at the end of the season. If Sabonis is considered by experts to be highly likely to be in the All-NBA's typical lineup, MIke Brown is a candidate for the title of Coach of The Year.
With the addition of many other additions such as Keegan Murray, Kevin Huerter or Malik Monk, the Sacramento Kings became an even team, with attack, defense and, importantly, great solidarity.
Despite having completed the 16-year long Playoffs thirst quenching, the Sacramento Kings still don't want to stop. Thrower Malik Monk said winning tickets to the Playoffs is only a small part of the team's goal, the most important thing being to get far in the postseason.
Currently, coach Mike Brown's teachers and students are ranked 3rd in the Western rankings with a record of 46-30. They will at least have the home field advantage in the first round of the Playoffs and can dream of a second place if the Memphis Grizzlies (48-28) neglect this sprint.
