2024 Sacramento Kings NBA playoff picture after loss to New Orleans Pelicans (April 11): Updated standings, schedule and more

The Sacramento Kings suffered a 135-123 home loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday. The crushing defeat put them in jeopardy of falling into the bottom half of the Western Conference play-in tournament.

New Orleans got off to a hot start, gaining a 23-point first-quarter advantage (34-11). Sacramento later rallied, coming within two points (78-76) midway through the third quarter. However, the Pelicans pulled away in the final period, never trailing throughout the night.

They were led by 31 points apiece from veteran guard CJ McCollum and star forward Zion Williamson. McCollum added four rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a season-high-tying nine 3-pointers, shooting 61.1%. Meanwhile, Williamson tallied four rebounds, six assists and three steals, shooting 61.9%.

As for Sacramento, it was spearheaded by star guard De'Aaron Fox. He finished with a game-high 33 points, five rebounds, eight assists, two steals and three 3s on 61.1% shooting.

Overall, both teams shot the lights out, as the Pelicans shot 57.0% and 55.0% from 3, while the Kings shot 54.8% and 42.1% from deep. However, New Orleans knocked down six more 3-pointers (22-16).

Sacramento's defeat marked its second straight and fourth in its last five games. Meanwhile, the Kings were swept 5-0 in their season series against New Orleans. Nonetheless, with a strong finish, they could secure a top-eight seed.

On that note, here’s a snapshot of Sacramento's standing in the West playoff picture with two games remaining.

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Sacramento Kings Playoff Picture: Standings

Following Thursday's loss to New Orleans, the Kings (45-35) remain eighth in the West. However, they are in a three-way tie with the ninth-placed Golden State Warriors (45-35) and 10th-placed LA Lakers (45-35).

Sacramento owns the tiebreaker over the Lakers, having won their season series 4-0. Meanwhile, the Kings split their season series 2-2 against the Warriors but own the tiebreaker via their better division record (10-6 vs. 7-9).

Additionally, Sacramento owns the three-way tiebreaker over Golden State and LA, having the best record among the three teams in their showdowns this season (6-2).

If the Kings finish ninth or 10th, they need to win two play-in games to advance to the playoffs. However, the eighth seed would give them two chances to win one game to make the playoffs.

Updated Western Conference standings following Sacramento Kings' loss to New Orleans Pelicans

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Sacramento Kings Playoff Picture: Schedule

Sacramento closes the season with home matchups against the Phoenix Suns (47-33) and Portland Trail Blazers (21-59) on Friday and Sunday.

Like the Kings, the seventh-seeded Suns are jostling for playoff positioning, trailing the sixth-seeded Pelicans (48-32) by just 1.0 game. So, they project to be a tough opponent.

However, Sacramento shouldn't have any problem dispatching the 14th-placed Blazers, who have lost three straight games.

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Sacramento Kings Playoff Picture: X-factor

The Kings have struggled in the absence of sixth man Malik Monk, going 3-4 since he suffered a sprained right MCL against the Dallas Mavericks on March 29. They have sorely missed his scoring (15.4 points per game) and playmaking abilities (5.1 assists per game).

Sacramento's bench scoring has dropped from ninth in the NBA (36.7 ppg) to 21st (29.6 ppg) since his injury. That has put more pressure on Fox and co-star Domantas Sabonis offensively.

So, the Kings will likely need someone else to step up offensively off the bench if they want to have a chance of making noise in the postseason.

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