Kawhi Leonard injury further increases Sacramento Kings' odds of taking home division title

At the end of the day, divisions in the NBA are basically meaningless. But it is still nice to win them, especially when you have done so as infrequently as the Kings. After winning the Pacific Division in 2003, the Kings have only won one division title since then (in 2023).

However, they have a strong chance of doing so this year, as the Kings are projected to be the second-best team in their division (one that includes the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, and Phoenix Suns).

According to DraftKings Sportsbook, the Kings have +245 odds to win the Pacific Division, trailing behind only the Kevin Durant and Devin Booker-led Suns (+155).

How Kawhi Leonard news affects the Sacramento Kings

This brings us to the main event of this post. On Thursday, it was announced that Clippers All-NBA forward Kawhi Leonard will miss an indefinite period of time as he recovers from inflammation in his knee. The same inflammation that forced him to miss the final three games of the Clippers' first round series against the Dallas Mavericks and the 2024 Olympics.

In isolation, this news doesn't sound too terrible. After all, it's not like Shams Charania reported that Leonard will miss 4-6 months with this injury. But we've seen this movie with Leonard before. At this point, there have been numerous occasions where Leonard's injuries have been underplayed in their initial reporting.

There is a good chance that the Clippers will spend most of their season without Leonard in the lineup. And at this point in time, James Harden is too old (35) to carry teams on his back like he did during his peak heliocentrism days.

Obviously, it is too soon to tell for certain. But if Leonard isn't healthy, the Clippers will not be competing for a division title. That means our Kings have one less team to worry about in their race to take home the Pacific Division crown.