NBA Power Rankings 18: A new top team as the playoffs approach

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84. . 24-35. Previous: 25th. Sacramento Kings. 24. team

Last Week: Beat Dallas Mavericks 121-107, Lost to Minnesota Timberwolves 134-102, Beat Minnesota Timberwolves 128-125

This Week: 4/25 at Golden State Warriors, 4/26 vs. Dallas Mavericks, 4/28 vs. Utah Jazz, 4/30 at Los Angeles Lakers

Whatever there has been to say about the Sacramento Kings quickly gets sidetracked by the news that De’Aaron Fox will be sidelined for the next 10-14 days as he has entered the league’s health and safety protocols. Whatever loose hope the Kings had of making one final push for the play-in tournament was quickly dashed with the absence of the proverbial straw that stirs the drink.

Fox may be able to come back for the final week of the season. At that point, the push to end the postseason streak will be over. The Kings are 5.5 games out of the 10th seed at this point. Without their best player, they will likely be even more on the path to counting ping pong balls.

In the 11 games that Fox has played this month, he is averaging 27.3 points, 7.3 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game. He is a consistent 3-point shot (28.8 percent this month) away from being a no-brainer All-Star. The team around him needs to improve, which feels like it has perennially been the case for the Kings since the middle of the 2000s. The Kings couldn’t figure that out for DeMarcus Cousins. If they are going to do that again around an elite talent, the despair will only continue.