After falling to the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the NBA Play-In Tournament, the Sacramento Kings' disappointing 2024-25 NBA Season came to a painful end. Had they won that game, they would have played the Memphis Grizzlies for the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
However, judging by what's happening to the Grizzlies, it seems that the Kings' death wasn't as painful as we originally thought. In fact, based on what the Grizzlies are going through right now, it seems like the Kings got off easy.
The Grizzlies are getting dismantled by the Oklahoma City Thunder
After beating the Mavericks, the Grizzlies were "gifted" with the eighth seed in the Western Conference. We have the word gifted in quotation marks because, while it is a privilege to continue playing basketball, being in the eighth spot means that you are tasked with the burden of playing the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Along with sporting the best record in the league, the 2024-25 Thunder own the second-best net rating in NBA history (+12.8), trailing behind only the legendary 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.
Simply put, the Thunder are not an easy team to deal with, and they haven't allowed their regular season success to get to their heads, as they have come out in these first two games looking as hungry as ever.
It started in Game 1, where the Thunder quite literally obliterated the Grizzlies by 51 points. And before you ask, no, that is not a typo. To be fair, the Grizzlies did make some improvement in Game 2. But even with that factored in, they still managed to lose by 19 points.
It's been so bad that the Grizzlies actually have the second-worst point differential through two playoff games of any team in NBA history at this point in the series (the worst being the 1985-86 San Antonio Spurs).
Worst point differential in first two playoff games in NBA history: pic.twitter.com/ZgplLgrsTa
— Extra Muse (@extra_muse) April 23, 2025
Despite their late-season struggles, the Grizzlies have been a much better team than the Kings all season long. They won eight more regular season games than them, and their net rating was +4.1 points higher. So, if the Thunder are doing this to a team like the Grizzlies, just imagine what they would be doing to the Kings (hint: it would be very bad for Sacramento).
So, while it hurts to miss the playoffs for the second straight season (and the 18th time in the last 19), the sad truth is that the Kings may have dodged a bullet by avoiding a first round series against the Thunder.