Sacramento Kings Ranked 30th In Future NBA Power Rankings

The Sacramento Kings placed dead last in this NBA Future Power Rankings, even below the Los Angeles Clippers.

Sep 17, 2026, 3:49 PM

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 15: Darius Acuff Jr. #5 and Alex Karaban #33 of the Sacramento Kings pose ...

Darius Acuff Jr. #5 and Alex Karaban #33 of the Sacramento Kings pose for a portrait during the 2026 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot at UNLV on July 15, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

(Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

The Sacramento Kings have been viewed as a lower-tier organization throughout their time in the NBA, and a recent NBA Power Rankings prediction forecasts a similar future.

A wide variety of NBA analysts and insiders at ESPN recently released their annual Future NBA Power Rankings, projecting the next three seasons. The top five are the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets, and the New York Knicks, in that order.

Given that the Los Angeles Clippers recently had five draft picks taken away from them as punishment for circumventing the salary cap for Kawhi Leonard, you would think they belong at the bottom of the list. Yet, they’re ranked 29th, one spot above the dead-last Sacramento Kings.

ESPN ranked four different categories out of 100: players, management, draft, money, and market. Here’s how they ranked Sacramento in those categories and where they rank among the rest of the league.

Players: 13 (30th in NBA)
Management: 20 (29th)
Draft: 68 (11th)
Money: 68 (9th)
Market: 25 (29th)

New Orleans is the 30th-ranked market and also shares last place (29th) in the management category. Ben Golliver predicts that Sacramento will have the worst defense in the league next season and potentially again in 2027-28, highlighting that they haven’t had a competent defense in some time.

The Kings will have the NBA’s worst defense this season (and maybe again in 2027-28). Here’s a depressing note: Sacramento hasn’t had an above-average defense since 2005-06. During those 20 years, the Kings bottomed out on multiple occasions. They appear headed for another demoralizing campaign after ranking 28th last year. Acuff is bound to be targeted by opposing offenses and Sabonis isn’t exactly a stopper. Utah and Washington were the only teams with worse defenses than Sacramento last season, and they both added notable frontcourt upgrades.

– Golliver, NBA Future Power Rankings: Three-year outlooks for all 30 teams

Honestly, it’s hard to argue with their rankings. You could make the case that the Kings belong a few spots higher, but they have no business being outside of the bottom 10. Veteran players on significant contracts in the form of Zach LaVine, Domantas Sabonis, and Malik Monk currently demand most of their cap space.

The Kings also own all of their future draft picks aside from a swap owed to the Spurs in 2031, but they also own an unprotected Minnesota 1st that same season. That’s a solid spot to be in, but their past makes people understandably hesitant to trust their future, even despite rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr. being a potential franchise changer.