The Atlanta Hawks and Sacramento Kings each need to get the very best play-in seeding attainable. However as a result of a three-year-old commerce between the groups, the Kings would like that the Hawks and different Jap Convention groups maintain profitable.
The Hawks traded Kevin Huerter to the Kings earlier than the 2022-23 season in change for a lottery-protected 2024 first-round choose. When that choose did not convey final season, it was a 2025 choose, protected for picks 1-12.
After defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night time, the Kings are 38-40 and sitting in ninth place. They’d be on observe to select 14th, with solely a 2.4% probability of shifting up. If that holds, Atlanta would get their choose.
The Hawks are in eighth place, one recreation worse than the Kings at 37-41. Atlanta owes its choose to the San Antonio Spurs it doesn’t matter what, because of a 2022 commerce for Dejounte Murray, a deal that seemingly prompted the Huerter commerce. The Hawks nonetheless have an opportunity to host the 7-8 play-in recreation if they will beat the Orlando Magic twice this week, in order that they’re motivated to win.
So the dream state of affairs for the Kings is numerous dropping from the Dallas Mavericks, a half-game behind them, and numerous profitable from the Jap Convention groups with related information. They want two groups to leapfrog them within the standings, whether or not it is the Miami Warmth, Chicago Bulls or the Hawks.
In reality, the Kings won’t thoughts if the Mavs handed them as effectively. If they might change into the Twelfth-worst group within the NBA as a substitute of 14th-worst, they could worth that greater than internet hosting a play-in recreation. Two years in the past, Dallas did not strive for the play-in in any respect and tanked its method into the top-10 to protect a protected first-rounder, ending up with middle Dereck Full of life II and a visit to the convention finals.
Atlanta has its personal enterprise to take care of within the common season’s last week. The Hawks’ entrance workplace at the least can be watching the scoreboard and cheering on the Kings — even when Sacramento’s executives won’t be.
