Kings Mailbag: Easy Wins and Bad Losses

The Sacramento Kings had a roller coaster 2023-24 season, to say the least.

Dec 11, 2023; Sacramento, California, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie (26) and Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk (0) and guard De'Aaron Fox (5) discuss the previous play during the third quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports / Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Welcome to the fifth edition of the Sacramento Kings mailbag with Will Z, where I attempt to find stats and information to answer questions submitted by fans from X (formerly Twitter), Threads, and Instagram.

Make sure to catch up on the previous mailbag articles:

Kings Mailbag: Keegan Murray's Year 3 Expectations 

Kings Mailbag: Is Lack of Size a Problem?

Kings Mailbag: Massive Bench Turnover

Kings Mailbag: Interior Defense Concerns

Today’s question comes from Brad on X:

With the exception of 5 games or less - Kings never win games by wide margins. Not even to teams with losing records. Should we expect a change next season, if so why?

— Brad Christopher (@BradChristoph13) August 3, 2024

One of the things that made the Kings so frustrating to watch last season was their propensity to win big games and then turn around and lose to mediocre or poor opponents. 

It left many fans with a sour taste even though the team was hovering around the same spot in the standings all season, but I would argue the Kings did better in this regard than it seems.

The Kings were tied for ninth in the league with ten wins by 20 or more points, and they did so against various opponents.

POR: +39 | MIL: +35 |TOR: +34 |MEM: +31 |BRK: +30 |DEN: +29 |CHO: +25 | UTA: +21 | DET: +21 |UTA: +21

There were some good teams in the mix with the Milwaukee Bucks and the Denver Nuggets, but the Kings were able to have easier nights against the likes of the Portland Trail Blazers and Charlotte Hornets.

The issue came with the Kings also losing eight games by 20 or more points, the 12th most such games in the league. 

Looking back at those eight games shows that the Kings lost predominantly to good teams, rather than losing big to subpar opponents.

NOP: -36 | DAL: -36 |NOP: -33 |CLE: -26 |HOU: -25 |BOS: -25 |DEN: -21 | LAC: -20

Other than the Houston Rockets, all are decent teams. And you could argue that even the Rockets were better than their record at times last season.

While more big wins should be expected this year with DeMar DeRozan, the league is more talented than ever, and any team can get going on any given night. Cruising to easy wins will be crucial to keeping everyone fresh down the season's homestretch. Avoiding big losses and staying in games will be just as important if not more in the loaded Western Conference.

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