Kings Playoff Standings Watch!!!
- Thread starter Rain man
- Start date
My dream ended after 1st...I am not sure what happened after that lol. They could have been down by 10pts but Holmes altered Poole's last shot attempt...a lob shot (a couple feet from the basket). Now, why is Holmes in the game? I have no idea lol. Let's see if my dream come true or not lol. It's the Kings vs Warriors.
I know why everybody around the league is afraid to write the Warriors off, but they just have not looked like a serious contender at all. They haven't been able to string together a stretch of truly convincing games this season, no matter who's been healthy and on the court. If they're just coasting in the regular season with intent to flip the switch when the playoffs roll around, then in my opinion, a hungry upstart like the Kings poses a greater threat to the Warriors than the Warriors pose to whomever they could face in the first round.
I would not take Golden State lightly, of course, but with the struggles the Kings experience on the defensive end, any team they might draw is a potentially dangerous matchup. I would not be surprised if the Kings knocked off the Clippers, Timberwolves, Thunder, Lakers, Mavericks, Pelicans, Jazz, or even the Warriors in the first round, but nor would I be surprised if their limp defense and playoff inexperience dooms them in any one of those matchups. They're going to go as far as their historic offense and their beaming confidence can take them, with an assist from what figures to be an absolutely rapturous home court environment, as long as the Kings can take advantage of it.
Ultimately, I'm weary from gawking at the western conference standings for weeks on end, trying to determine which opponent represents the most favorable matchup. Arguments can be made for every possible opponent. The Warriors are coasting on their rep. The Clippers and Lakers each rely on two stars who aren't routinely available. The Mavericks rely on two stars that don't play defense and they've got nobody else on the roster worth concerning oneself about. The Wolves have barely had time to figure out if KAT and Gobert can play with each other. The Thunder are even more inexperienced than the Kings. Etc. Etc. At this point, I think the Kings have a really good chance against any first round opponent they may face.
I would not take Golden State lightly, of course, but with the struggles the Kings experience on the defensive end, any team they might draw is a potentially dangerous matchup. I would not be surprised if the Kings knocked off the Clippers, Timberwolves, Thunder, Lakers, Mavericks, Pelicans, Jazz, or even the Warriors in the first round, but nor would I be surprised if their limp defense and playoff inexperience dooms them in any one of those matchups. They're going to go as far as their historic offense and their beaming confidence can take them, with an assist from what figures to be an absolutely rapturous home court environment, as long as the Kings can take advantage of it.
Ultimately, I'm weary from gawking at the western conference standings for weeks on end, trying to determine which opponent represents the most favorable matchup. Arguments can be made for every possible opponent. The Warriors are coasting on their rep. The Clippers and Lakers each rely on two stars who aren't routinely available. The Mavericks rely on two stars that don't play defense and they've got nobody else on the roster worth concerning oneself about. The Wolves have barely had time to figure out if KAT and Gobert can play with each other. The Thunder are even more inexperienced than the Kings. Etc. Etc. At this point, I think the Kings have a really good chance against any first round opponent they may face.
Right. We have no idea what to expect in the playoffs with this group. There will be added pressure, a more experienced opponent, and wildly inconsistent officiating from game to game. The toughest part about transitioning into the post-season is probably just going to be keeping emotions in check. We've seen this group fight through adversity already but it's a little different story when that "lose and your season is over" reality is staring you in the face. I'm not really thinking about which team we match up with best because there have been games this season where we can shoot anyone off the floor and other games when we allow opponents to score on us like we're not even there. It really just comes down to which version of the team shows up that night.
I will say... one thing I have thought about is which team it will feel the best to beat in the playoffs. And by that criteria, Golden State is #1 for me. They've dominated Nor Cal basketball for a decade now and it's time for them to pass the torch. The Lakers are a close second but with the added caveat that losing to the Lakers in the playoffs would be the worst of all possible worlds.
I will say... one thing I have thought about is which team it will feel the best to beat in the playoffs. And by that criteria, Golden State is #1 for me. They've dominated Nor Cal basketball for a decade now and it's time for them to pass the torch. The Lakers are a close second but with the added caveat that losing to the Lakers in the playoffs would be the worst of all possible worlds.
Kings Playoff Tracker
For the THIRD straight day, the Kings had a chance to clinch a top-6 playoff slot, but couldn't get the job done and didn't get the help they needed. It was rare 0-for-5 for the Kings. Disappointing, but just a short delay of the inevitable. Would have been nice to do it at home. Oh, well.
Today's games (6):
PHX def. Jazz
DEN def. Sixers
NOP def. Blazers
MIN def. SAC
LAC def. Bulls
Magic Number To Eliminate (TB=TieBreaker):
DEN (51-24) 14, 7 games remaining, TB 1-1, 1 to play (winner gets TB)
MEM (47-27) 11, 8 games remaining, TB goes to Kings if they win the Pacific Division, otherwise goes to Memphis
SAC (45-30) --, 7 games remaining
PHX (40-35) 3, 7 games remaining, TB goes to team with better division win%
GSW (39-37) 1, 6 games remaining, TB=Warriors
LAC (40-36) 1, 6 games remaining, TB=Kings
--- Playoffs ---
MIN (39-37) 1, 6 games remaining, TB=T'Wolves
NOP (38-37) 1, 7 games remaining, TB=Pelicans
Tomorrow's games (3):
Magic at MEM, 5 PM
NOP at GSW, 7 PM --> Loser is eliminated! Furthermore, if the loser is GSW, the Kings secure a top-6 playoff spot.
For the THIRD straight day, the Kings had a chance to clinch a top-6 playoff slot, but couldn't get the job done and didn't get the help they needed. It was rare 0-for-5 for the Kings. Disappointing, but just a short delay of the inevitable. Would have been nice to do it at home. Oh, well.
Today's games (6):
PHX def. Jazz
DEN def. Sixers
NOP def. Blazers
MIN def. SAC
LAC def. Bulls
Magic Number To Eliminate (TB=TieBreaker):
DEN (51-24) 14, 7 games remaining, TB 1-1, 1 to play (winner gets TB)
MEM (47-27) 11, 8 games remaining, TB goes to Kings if they win the Pacific Division, otherwise goes to Memphis
SAC (45-30) --, 7 games remaining
PHX (40-35) 3, 7 games remaining, TB goes to team with better division win%
GSW (39-37) 1, 6 games remaining, TB=Warriors
LAC (40-36) 1, 6 games remaining, TB=Kings
--- Playoffs ---
MIN (39-37) 1, 6 games remaining, TB=T'Wolves
NOP (38-37) 1, 7 games remaining, TB=Pelicans
Tomorrow's games (3):
Magic at MEM, 5 PM
NOP at GSW, 7 PM --> Loser is eliminated! Furthermore, if the loser is GSW, the Kings secure a top-6 playoff spot.
The wide open 3s are a problem but their interior scoring is not and I'd say we defend the 3 a little bit better than that, and they don't have the lengthy wings available they usually do.
The cons of facing of the Warriors are if you don't believe this is the year they fade and they can still kick it into another gear for the postseason. Which I haven't made up my mind if that's a thing.
Lakers are a problem of course because of what you said. Hell, it's already happening right now in random regular season games in order to keep them in the hunt.. Luckily the Pelicans and Wolves are winning and keeping them off our backs, which is why I'm not too torn up about losing to the Wolves tonight, narratives be damned.
PHX is of course priority #1 to avoid.
The cons of facing of the Warriors are if you don't believe this is the year they fade and they can still kick it into another gear for the postseason. Which I haven't made up my mind if that's a thing.
Lakers are a problem of course because of what you said. Hell, it's already happening right now in random regular season games in order to keep them in the hunt.. Luckily the Pelicans and Wolves are winning and keeping them off our backs, which is why I'm not too torn up about losing to the Wolves tonight, narratives be damned.
PHX is of course priority #1 to avoid.
Yeah, Kings fans are anticipating the Warriors turning back into the 2017-2019 squads come post season but they just don't have the depth or size that those squads (or last season's team for that matter did).
Their defense is seriously just as bad as the Kings for the most part. Klay is no longer even a passible defender, let alone the All-Defensive team guy he was pre-injuries. Dray is older now. Wiggins is probably going to miss the playoffs and GPII is still going to be less than 100%. They don't have Otto Porter coming off the bench for them anymore either and are really missing Mike Brown.
Offensively, they're still the Warriors and Steph is ridiculous but the advanced metrics still give us the advantage on that end as well. Depth-wise, DDV has been a good pickup for them and Jordan Poole has essentially become Monta Ellis (time is a flat circle) but their big man situation is even worse than ours and Kuminga is their only passable wing/forward.
I'm not claiming that they'd be an easy out or anything but the fears of us getting our pants blown off in a seven game series would seem to be rooted more in 17 years of trauma than any actual evidence.
Their defense is seriously just as bad as the Kings for the most part. Klay is no longer even a passible defender, let alone the All-Defensive team guy he was pre-injuries. Dray is older now. Wiggins is probably going to miss the playoffs and GPII is still going to be less than 100%. They don't have Otto Porter coming off the bench for them anymore either and are really missing Mike Brown.
Offensively, they're still the Warriors and Steph is ridiculous but the advanced metrics still give us the advantage on that end as well. Depth-wise, DDV has been a good pickup for them and Jordan Poole has essentially become Monta Ellis (time is a flat circle) but their big man situation is even worse than ours and Kuminga is their only passable wing/forward.
I'm not claiming that they'd be an easy out or anything but the fears of us getting our pants blown off in a seven game series would seem to be rooted more in 17 years of trauma than any actual evidence.
They shoot 3s well but they can't get anything going to the rim, and that's NEVER been an issue with them before despite their reputation coming on the 3 point shot.
With that said, I'd rather face the Wolves over them despite the stirs that the Wolves are a bad matchup.
A first round matchup with the Wolves involves them trying to work back KAT into a team that he doesn't have chemistry with and the worst conceivable fit in the modern NBA.
And Gobert gets played off the floor every single year.
AND there's no risk of the Wolves dragging the bandwagon with them into a neighboring arena.
With that said, I'd rather face the Wolves over them despite the stirs that the Wolves are a bad matchup.
A first round matchup with the Wolves involves them trying to work back KAT into a team that he doesn't have chemistry with and the worst conceivable fit in the modern NBA.
And Gobert gets played off the floor every single year.
AND there's no risk of the Wolves dragging the bandwagon with them into a neighboring arena.
I know the rough dates of the playoffs are announced:
But, are there any more specific bracket information for the 1st round? e.g. 3 seed vs 6 seed GM1 April 15th....etc.?
2023 NBA Playoffs Key Dates:
April 9: NBA regular season ends
April 11: Play-In Game 1
East 7 vs. East 8 > Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA Playoffs
April 11: Play-In Game 2
West 7 vs. West 8 > Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA Playoffs
April 12: Play-In Game 3
East 9 vs. East 10 > Winner plays loser of East 7/8 game
April 12: Play-In Game 4
West 9 vs. West 10 > Winner plays loser of West 7/8 game
April 14: Play-In Game 5
East Loser 7/8 vs. East Winner 9/10 > Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
April 14: Play-In Game 6
West Loser 7/8 vs. West Winner 9/10 > Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
April 15: NBA Playoffs 2023 begin
May 1-2: NBA Conference Semifinals begin (possible move-up to April 29-30)
May 16-17: NBA Conference Finals begin (possible move-up to May 14-15)
June 1: NBA Finals 2023 Game 1
June 1: NBA Finals 2023 Game 1
June 4: NBA Finals 2023 Game 2
June 7: NBA Finals 2023 Game 3
June 9: NBA Finals 2023 Game 4
June 12: NBA Finals 2023 Game 5 (if necessary)
June 15: NBA Finals 2023 Game 6 (if necessary)
June 18: NBA Finals 2023 Game 7 (if necessary)
But, are there any more specific bracket information for the 1st round? e.g. 3 seed vs 6 seed GM1 April 15th....etc.?
2023 NBA Playoffs Key Dates:
April 9: NBA regular season ends
April 11: Play-In Game 1
East 7 vs. East 8 > Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA Playoffs
April 11: Play-In Game 2
West 7 vs. West 8 > Winner earns 7th seed and advances to NBA Playoffs
April 12: Play-In Game 3
East 9 vs. East 10 > Winner plays loser of East 7/8 game
April 12: Play-In Game 4
West 9 vs. West 10 > Winner plays loser of West 7/8 game
April 14: Play-In Game 5
East Loser 7/8 vs. East Winner 9/10 > Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
April 14: Play-In Game 6
West Loser 7/8 vs. West Winner 9/10 > Winner earns 8th seed and advances to NBA playoffs
April 15: NBA Playoffs 2023 begin
May 1-2: NBA Conference Semifinals begin (possible move-up to April 29-30)
May 16-17: NBA Conference Finals begin (possible move-up to May 14-15)
June 1: NBA Finals 2023 Game 1
June 1: NBA Finals 2023 Game 1
June 4: NBA Finals 2023 Game 2
June 7: NBA Finals 2023 Game 3
June 9: NBA Finals 2023 Game 4
June 12: NBA Finals 2023 Game 5 (if necessary)
June 15: NBA Finals 2023 Game 6 (if necessary)
June 18: NBA Finals 2023 Game 7 (if necessary)
