If someone was to say that the Sacramento Kings had been struggling mightily, that would've been putting it lightly. But at least for one night, the Kings and their fans have something to smile about.
Entering Monday night's contest against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Kings had lost 16 straight games dating back to January 18, 2026. This marked a new franchise record for Sacramento since the team moved to California's capital.
The previous longest losing streak in Sacramento history was 12, done back in the 1997-98 season. The previous longest losing streak in franchise history dates back to the 1971-72 season, when the Cincinnati Royals lost 14 games in a row.
In addition to the 16-game losing streak, the Kings had also lost 16 consecutive games on the road dating back to December 6, 2025.
Russell Westbrook was the game's leading scorer with 25 points, two rebounds, and seven assists in 33 minutes of play. Sacramento led for almost the entire night, with its lead growing as big as 13 in a game where the Grizzlies were without eight key rotational players in Ja Morant, Zach Edey, Cedric Coward, Brandon Clarke, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Santi Aldama, Ty Jerome, and Kyle Anderson.
With the victory, the Kings improved to 13-46 on the season with a two-game lead over the Indiana Pacers for the worst record in the NBA.
At this stage in the season, teams like the Kings, Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets, and Washington Wizards are all positioning themselves to be a bottom-three team to give themselves a 14 percent chance to land the number one overall pick in what's considered a loaded 2026 NBA Draft.
The Kings have the eighth toughest strength of schedule remaining over the final month-and-a-half of the season.
