Kings Playoff Standings Watch!!!

Since acquiring D-Lo, Vanderbilt, and Beasley, the Lakers have gone 4-1....

ya, I remember people here saying that they would only be good "on paper." They're only 2.5 games back from the 6th seed, and I think that'll be where they're targeting. As a matter of fact, I think that might be where all the teams beneath us are targeting if the Kings continue to hold onto the 3rd seed.

What does this mean for the Kings' playoff chances? I think it's going to make every team in the NBA motivated to keep winning and try to slot in #6. They probably see us the "easiest" road to the 2nd round and WCF due to our playoff inexperience.

Every win from here on out is going to be crucial. I don't think we can afford to have any losing skids because everyone else is legitimately only a couple win streaks away from threatening our playoff spot despite being up 10 games above .500. We can't take our foot off the gas pedal.
Watched the Lakers/Mavs game, and Vanderbelt was awesome looking.....his defense was excellent - too bad the Kings don't have him.
 
Hopefully we’re just resting Fox tonight and his injury won’t linger. He’s questionable tonight with a sore wrist but i want him to play if he can. This would be the second time he’s missed a game or two right after we build momentum with wins
 
It's always bad form to root for injuries, but I'm finding it difficult not to think of this as some kind of karmic retribution for the Lakers getting absolutely bailed out at the trade deadline by Danny Ainge, of all GMs, on top of the arrogant chatter of angling for a particular playoff opponent before LA had even reached the pathetically low bar of play-in contention.
 
This last stretch is flying by, the last day of February is already here! Not many games left, each day becomes more important to every team in the Playoff race. Important non-Kings games today:

Lakers @ Grizzlies (TNT)
Pacers @ Mavs
Spurs @ Jazz
Trail Blazers @ Warriors
Timberwolves @ Clippers (TNT)

Tough to say who I’m rooting for in the first game. With LeBron out for 2-3 weeks at a minimum, they’re basically left with no shot at making the Playoffs unless AD goes super saiyan. I’ll still root for the Grizzlies just to be safe. I wanna see the Lakers rack up a few losses before I root for them to beat our top 6 competitors.

Then, we need our old friend Hali to take down the Mavs, Pop/the Spurs to end their unbelievably long losing streak and take down the Jazz, and Lillard to go nuclear on the Warriors.

TWolves-Clippers is another tough one to call but the Twolves have been melting down and have a brutal schedule the rest of the way so I’d take a win from them because I don’t see a pathway to the top 6 for Minnesota.
 
This last stretch is flying by, the last day of February is already here! Not many games left, each day becomes more important to every team in the Playoff race. Important non-Kings games today:

Lakers @ Grizzlies (TNT)
Pacers @ Mavs
Spurs @ Jazz
Trail Blazers @ Warriors
Timberwolves @ Clippers (TNT)

Tough to say who I’m rooting for in the first game. With LeBron out for 2-3 weeks at a minimum, they’re basically left with no shot at making the Playoffs unless AD goes super saiyan. I’ll still root for the Grizzlies just to be safe. I wanna see the Lakers rack up a few losses before I root for them to beat our top 6 competitors.

Then, we need our old friend Hali to take down the Mavs, Pop/the Spurs to end their unbelievably long losing streak and take down the Jazz, and Lillard to go nuclear on the Warriors.

TWolves-Clippers is another tough one to call but the Twolves have been melting down and have a brutal schedule the rest of the way so I’d take a win from them because I don’t see a pathway to the top 6 for Minnesota.
Lakers @ Grizzlies (TNT) - I am going to be a greedy Kings fan, and want that 2nd seed. A Grizzlies loss would go a long way in helping us get that 2nd seed.
Pacers @ Mavs - I actually wouldn't mind seeing the Mavs win here. Because I actually wouldn't mind seeing us play against Luka for at least 4 games in the first round of the playoffs. I think it would be a fun matchup to watch.
Spurs @ Jazz - I wouldn't mind seeing the Jazz win here. Because, should we move up to that 2nd seed, I wouldn't necessarily mind seeing the Jazz in the first round. With this being said...
Trail Blazers @ Warriors - I want to see the Blazers win as much as they can in order to move up to that 7th seed, or even the 6th if they can play well enough, because out of all of our potential first round opponents, taking care of them will most likely be the easiest.
Timberwolves @ Clippers (TNT) - I actually think that a Clippers W would be most beneficial to us, as that keeps them in that 5th seed in the conference. I would actually be scared to go up against them in the first round, so I don't want them to drop any lower than where they currently sit.
 
Lakers @ Grizzlies (TNT) - I am going to be a greedy Kings fan, and want that 2nd seed. A Grizzlies loss would go a long way in helping us get that 2nd seed.
Pacers @ Mavs - I actually wouldn't mind seeing the Mavs win here. Because I actually wouldn't mind seeing us play against Luka for at least 4 games in the first round of the playoffs. I think it would be a fun matchup to watch.
Spurs @ Jazz - I wouldn't mind seeing the Jazz win here. Because, should we move up to that 2nd seed, I wouldn't necessarily mind seeing the Jazz in the first round. With this being said...
Trail Blazers @ Warriors - I want to see the Blazers win as much as they can in order to move up to that 7th seed, or even the 6th if they can play well enough, because out of all of our potential first round opponents, taking care of them will most likely be the easiest.
Timberwolves @ Clippers (TNT) - I actually think that a Clippers W would be most beneficial to us, as that keeps them in that 5th seed in the conference. I would actually be scared to go up against them in the first round, so I don't want them to drop any lower than where they currently sit.
Can’t say I condone rooting for matchups at this point. Secure the top 6 seed, then we can talk matchups!
 

Tetsujin

The Game Thread Dude
Nembhard playing the role of Tank commander for the Pacers tonight. Clangs two free throws to give the Mavs a chance to tie or win with a three. Disgusting