Vs. Indiana Pacers December 22 (3 PM PST/6 PM EST)
In my mind, one of the biggest misconceptions in the NBA is that the Indiana Pacers fleeced the Kings in the Tyrese Haliburton/Sabonis trade.
The reason people think that is that Haliburton has developed into the better player (he was 11th in EPM, while Sabonis was 41st), and the Pacers have gone further since the Kings since the deal – making it to the Eastern Conference Finals last postseason.
What those people fail to realize is that Haliburton probably wouldn't have blossomed into the same player had he stayed in Sacramento and that Sabonis was the better fit for our team. Plus, trading Haliburton has helped De'Aaron Fox ascend into an All-Star caliber player. It is also important to keep in mind that the Kings play in a tougher conference, and it is harder to make deep runs because of that.
With all this in mind, the best way to clap back at all the naysayers is to beat the Pacers when the two teams meet up. And the first time that will happen is on December 22, when the Kings play host to the Pacers at Golden 1 Center. We really need to tighten up for that game to remind everyone that the Haliburton/Sabonis trade was not nearly as lopsided as some people seem to think.
(Sidebar: This is all without mentioning the mini-storyline of Pascal Siakam basically choosing the Pacers over the Kings in February.)