Record: 27-21
OffRtg: 117.5 (1) DefRtg: 114.7 (21) NetRtg: +2.7 (7) Pace: 101.5 (7)
Through Friday, the Kings had played the league’s most home-heavy schedule, with 27 of their first 47 games at the Golden 1 Center. And of course, that meant that they had the league’s most road-heavy schedule (21/35) going forward. They went into their seven-game trip as one of only two Western Conference teams with a winning road record, but they began the trip with a loss in Minnesota, allowing the Wolves to register an effective field goal percentage of 63.1%, the third highest mark the Kings have allowed this season.
Prior to that, the Kings had the league’s ninth-ranked road defense, and they remain one of five teams that have allowed fewer points per 100 possessions on the road (113.4, 10th) than they have at home (115.7, 28th). If that’s still the case when this trip is done, the Kings should be in pretty good shape.
Overall, the Kings have lost three of their last four games, getting outscored by 31 points (126-95) in the third quarter over that stretch. The Kings have the league’s eighth best record and they have two strong All-Star candidates (Domantas Sabonis should be a lock), but their starting lineup has not been particularly strong. It’s outscored its opponents by 5.5 points per 100 possessions, a mark which ranks 11th among the 21 lineups that have played at least 200 minutes. And it’s actually been outscored by 1.6 per 100 over 182 total minutes in the third quarter.
There are still three games in the loss column separating the third-place Kings from the slew of teams behind them. But these three weeks before the All-Star break will be critical, with five of their nine remaining pre-break games against the Wolves, Pelicans, Mavs (x2) and Suns. The Kings are currently 5-8 (13 is the fewest games played) within the top nine in the Western Conference.
Week 16: @ MIN, @ SAS, @ IND, @ NOP