The Sacramento Kings and Miami Heat are at different points in their respective seasons. The Heat are trying as hard as possible to secure their spot in the playoffs, while the Kings are tanking.
Despite those realities, the Kings managed to beat the Heat 123-119 in overtime on Wednesday night. That result goes against every goal the respective franchises are trying to achieve.
Even Sacramento fans know it. When the Kings had a lead in the fourth quarter, one fan sitting near a beat writer had a very specific message for the home team, per Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee.
There's a fan yelling "hey guys, start losing"
— Jason Jones (@mr_jasonjones) March 15, 2018
That is funny, but it's not at the same time. It's likely that no one on the bench or the court heard this fan, but no player or coach likes the idea of losing on purpose just to try for a higher position in the NBA draft lottery.
But fans are smart enough to know that the worse the Kings are, the better off the franchise can become much sooner rather than later. It's no doubt that someone in the front office also thinks this.
But organizations tank, not players. It's for that reason that the Kings found a way to grind out the win over the Heat. Basketball players have a lot of pride, and will try their best win a game if it's there for the taking.
In Miami's case, they have to win that game. Sacramento has one of the worst records in the league and nothing to play for.
Because the Heat are in that tight mix from third to eighth in the Eastern Conference, they can't afford to lose games they should win. The Kings are a team they should beat, and they didn't take care of business.
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