Kings fall to Clippers, but still hold slim advantage for 9th seed

The Western Conference postseason field is set, but the Sacramento Kings may need to win Sunday’s regular season finale if they want to host next week’s win-or-go-home Play-In game.

Sacramento could have clinched home court with a win on Friday night, but a motivated Los Angeles Clippers squad wouldn’t let a late run from the Beam Team spoil their night as they secured a 101-100 win that all but ensured they will finish the season with a top-six spot in the West Playoff picture.

As the Kings (39-42) head into the final game of the regular season, the task is simple: Win and you host, or hope that Dallas loses to Memphis in order to host Wednesday night’s do-or-die postseason action.

Clippers hold on and move into 5th in the West heading into the final game!

7th-straight W 📈 pic.twitter.com/Fj0kB1Bnv7

— NBA (@NBA) April 12, 2025

Kings vs. Clippers recap & takeaways

In his first game action in one week, Keegan Murray knocked the rust off early by scoring seven points in the opening frame as Sacramento jumped out to a five-point lead after the first 12 minutes of action.

Ball movement hasn’t been a strength for the Kings as of late, with a lot of their offense carrying a “your turn, my turn” isolation-heavy approach on most nights. However, that wasn’t the case against Los Angeles.

Sacramento did a great job of moving the ball around early, as the Kings handed out 13 assists on 19 made baskets during the first half, leading by as many as nine points in the process.

With great ball movement comes balanced scoring, and Sacramento didn’t have to rely heavily on Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan to carry the load on the offensive end. Five players scored five or more points during the first half, including Domantas Sabonis, who posted his NBA-leading 60th double-double of the season before the break (10 points and 11 rebounds).

As great as the Kings’ offense looked during the first two quarters, they relented down the final stretch of the second period, allowing the Clippers to mount an 11-3 run that put Los Angeles ahead 50-49 heading into the third quarter.

welcome back, Keeg 🥹 pic.twitter.com/9GIozWRzZS

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) April 12, 2025

The Clippers entered play ranked eighth in the NBA in paint scoring, and they continued to make Sacramento pay in that area as play entered the second half.

Los Angeles pushed the pace and got to the basket often in the third quarter, leading by as many as seven points while shooting 67 percent from the field in the period. Even though the Kings struggled to create stops–while shooting just 38 percent on their end of the floor–Sacramento was within reach heading into the fourth, trailing 75-70 with twelve minutes to go.

After struggling for the majority of the night, Zach LaVine (13 points in the fourth quarter) and DeMar DeRozan (nine points in the fourth) put the Kings on their back in crunch time to make things interesting, trimming the Clippers’ lead to one with 3.2 seconds to go.

Murray picked off James Harden’s inbound pass out of the timeout, giving Sacramento a chance to walk out of Golden 1 Center with a thrilling comeback win, but DeRozan’s attempt at the horn–a running one-footer while covered by white jerseys–was well off, giving Los Angeles the slim one-point victory.

It appeared that DeRozan was on the receiving end of some contact on his final attempt, but he told the media he felt he wasn’t fouled. Instead, the six-time All-Star wished he would have taken a better look.

Interim head coach Doug Christie alluded to the final play in his postgame press conference, saying a lot while saying a little.

“There’s a lot I want to say, but I’m not going to,” Christie said.

CLUTCH steal from Keegan Murray.

Kings ball, down 1 with 2.2 to go. pic.twitter.com/XpUJPlI6aU

— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) April 12, 2025

Sacramento won’t have much time to feel sorry for themselves, not with one more game to go as they prepare for Wednesday’s win-or-go-home Play-In game against Dallas.

It would be wise for the Kings to take care of business against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, as Sacramento will clinch the ninth seed in the West and homecourt in the Play-In with a win OR Dallas loss to Memphis.

Here are the scenarios for Sacramento with one game to go. Then, it’s go-time for the Beam Team.

Sacramento falls to LAC, meaning these are the scenarios for Sunday’s regular-season finale:

▪️SAC beats PHX: SAC clinches 9th seed
OR
▪️DAL loses to MEM: SAC clinches 9th seed

Both teams win or both teams lose? SAC gets 9th.

SAC loss + DAL win: DAL clinches 9th

— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) April 12, 2025

Notes

• With his field goal at the 6:29 mark of the fourth quarter, DeMar DeRozan passed Hall of Fame guard Reggie Miller for 25th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list (25,279 points).

Injury Updates

Keegan Murray (low back soreness) returned following a three-game absence.

Malik Monk (left calf strain) will be out for at least two weeks, meaning he will miss next week’s Play-In Tournament. Monk could return if Sacramento advances to the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

Jake LaRavia (left thumb; incomplete scaphoid fracture) was seen getting up shots–with his left hand taped–during pregame warm-ups and continues to progress towards a return to game action. An update on LaRavia is expected to come before the end of the regular season.

When is the next Sacramento Kings game?

The end of the regular season has arrived!

Sacramento will play its final tune-up game ahead of the postseason on Sunday when it faces a Phoenix Suns team closing out one of its most disappointing seasons in its franchise’s history.

Be sure to catch all of the Sacramento Kings vs. Phoenix Suns drama right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage starting at 11:00 AM PT on Game Night before action tips off at 12:30 PM PT from downtown Sacramento.

Upcoming schedule for the 2024-25 Sacramento Kings

• Sunday, April 13th vs. Phoenix Suns – 12:30 PM PT (Final game of regular season)
• Wednesday, April 16th – TBD (Western Conference Play-In Tournament – 9th vs. 10th seed game)

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