Few sports organizations have had a more trying last few months than the Dallas Mavericks. Not only did the team shock the basketball world by trading their franchise icon, Luka Doncic, in the middle of the night, but the main centerpiece of their return package, Anthony Davis, couldn't even play a full game before getting himself injured.
The tide seems to be starting to turn for them, though, as, on Monday, it was announced that Davis would be back in the lineup for the Mavericks game against the Brooklyn Nets.
Davis pushed hard in his rehab to make a comeback to the floor with Dallas late this season – even as the Mavericks sit in 11th in the West, tied with Suns at 34-37 entering tonight's game in Brooklyn. https://t.co/fzCoKx7HYH
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 24, 2025
What does this mean for the Sacramento Kings
Given that this is a page dedicated specifically to the Sacramento Kings, we need to point out how Davis' return impacts them.
A few weeks ago, the Kings seemed like a lock to get one of the four Western Conference Play-In spots. However, a recent slump (the Kings have dropped six of their last eight games) has made their appearance in the tournament far less certain.
At 35-35, the Kings are ninth in the Western Conference. They are currently only 1.5 games ahead of the Mavericks and Phoenix Suns, who are tied for the tenth seed. If both of those teams leapfrog the Kings in the standings, then the Kings would be out of the play-in mix.
The Suns have the highest active payroll of any team in the league this year (per Spotrac). So, of course, they are going to do everything they can to extend their season and get their money's worth. After Kyrie Irving tore his ACL, many people thought that the Mavericks would call this season a wash. But now that Davis has battled so hard to come back, it looks like they are going to see if they can't sneak their way into a top 10 seed.
The bad news for the Kings is that they have the seventh-hardest remaining strength of schedule in the NBA (per Tankathon). So, fending these two teams off will not be easy. The good news, though, is that the Suns have the hardest remaining schedule from here on out, meaning that they will have their work cut out for them, too (the Mavericks have the 20th-hardest schedule).
The Kings are also pretty close to getting their All-NBA big man, as Domantas Sabonis was a full participant in Sunday's practice. He is listed as "questionable" ahead of their Monday night clash against the Boston Celtics.