The Ringer believes the 2024-25 Sacramento Kings are a below average team

With the 2024-25 NBA regular season set to begin this week, The Ringer – one of the most respected basketball publications – put out their final preseason power rankings. Unfortunately for fans of the Sacramento Kings, they don't view us as highly as they probably should.

For those wondering, The Ringer ranked the Kings 18th in their power rankings. They divided up their rankings into a six-part podcast series, where they discussed five teams at a time each episode. The Kings were in the 20 to 16 block with the San Antonio Spurs (20), Los Angeles Clippers (19), Golden State Warriors (17), and New Orleans Pelicans (16).

Where should the Sacramento Kings rank?

One of my biggest pet peeves about individuals criticizing a list like this (which I am sure The Ringer staff spent a great deal of time crafting) is that they never specify who their team should be in front of. Instead, they are just arguing aimlessly into the abyss. So, to avoid being hypocritical, let's cite some teams the Kings should be ranked ahead of.

In total, I believe there are at least six teams that are ranked ahead of the Kings that shouldn't be. The Warriors, Pelicans, Indiana Pacers (14), Los Angeles Lakers (12), Orlando Magic (11), and Phoenix Suns (10).

For the Warriors, while they have a nice blend of depth and young talent, relying on the volatile Draymond Green and aging Stephen Curry (who will turn 37 this season) doesn't give them a great recipe for success. Meanwhile, the Pelicans have a lot of talent, but none of it really fits together (you need talent and lineup cohesion to win in this league).

The Pacers and Magic are nice young teams, but both are still pretty slanted one-way (the Pacers on offense and the Magic on defense). Being constructed this way raises your floor, but it lowers your ceiling (I find it tough to imagine either of those teams winning a playoff series against a healthy team this season).

Having the Lakers and Suns over the Kings seems like over-indexing on big names. The Lakers are the more well-constructed team of the two, but they are coming off a season where LeBron James and Anthony Davis only missed a combined 16 games. If that number even falls off a little (which is likely given Davis' injury history and James' age), they are in a lot of trouble.

As for the Suns, they are in the same boat as the Pelicans, even with their offseason additions. Unless, that is, Ryan Dunn's preseason success is here to stay. If that's the case, it really could change their season outlook.

Of course, similar holes can be poked in this Kings' roster. I just believe that based on their offseason additions, how healthy their stars tend to be, and the potential upside Keegan Murray and Keon Ellis bring, the Kings should be ranked ahead of those six teams.

So, in a revised version of the power rankings, they would be 12th.