The Sacramento Kings opened the 2026-27 season with a performance that looked a lot worse than the final score first suggested.
They never led in a 121-96 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome, and once the game turned in the third quarter, it really got away from them. Sacramento was down 12 after one, trimmed the margin to seven by halftime, and then got hit with a 24-13 burst to start the third. From there, the Clippers stretched the lead, Sacramento unraveled, and a once-competitive game turned lopsided fast.
That’s what stood out most: Los Angeles did this while missing Brandon Ingram, Bradley Beal, and Max Strus. The Kings were without Malik Monk and Ben Simmons, who is out for the season, but they still had every reason to expect a sharper showing than this.
Instead, the night brought back too many of the same problems from last season - loose execution, shaky defense, and long stretches where Sacramento simply couldn’t get stops. The Clippers shot 41 points in the first quarter, buried seven of their first 10 threes, and hit 67% from the field in the opening frame. Sacramento settled things down some in the second quarter, holding Los Angeles to 38% shooting, but that didn’t last.
The biggest swing came after halftime. The Clippers outscored Sacramento 32-16 in the third quarter and pushed the margin to 18 before the Kings could ever settle back in.
Shooting from deep was another ugly storyline. Sacramento went just 8-for-28 from three, a 28% clip, while the Clippers connected at a 40% rate from beyond the arc.
The Kings came into the game having gone 1-22 last season when they shot below 30% from three. They found that same bad territory again.
Darius Acuff Jr. had a rough NBA debut after showing flashes in the preseason. The seventh-overall pick in June’s NBA Draft finished with 12 points but went 5-for-24 from the floor and missed all seven of his three-point tries in 34 minutes.
That kind of growing pain happens with rookies. The issue for Sacramento was that Keegan Murray didn’t give them much help at all.
Murray scored just two points, shot 1-for-8, and missed all four of his three-point attempts. Acuff and Murray, two players Sacramento will be leaning on from the perimeter along with Zach LaVine, combined to go 0-for-11 from deep.
LaVine, at least, gave the Kings the kind of scoring punch they needed. Back from the hand injury that cost him much of last season, he led Sacramento with 28 points on 10-for-19 shooting and carried a heavy load with Monk out and Acuff struggling to find rhythm.
Domantas Sabonis was another bright spot. After appearing in only 19 games last season because of a meniscus injury, he looked healthy and active, finishing with 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, plus 18 rebounds and eight assists.
Emanuel Sharp also made a strong first impression in his NBA debut. The 45th overall pick brought the defensive edge that had already made him a fan favorite in Summer League and preseason, finishing with five points, two steals and five fouls. It was the kind of showing that made it easy to see why Doug Christie wants a way to get him into the rotation.
Even with those positives, the bigger issues were impossible to ignore.
Sacramento’s rotation is already thin without Monk and Simmons, but that can’t explain getting pushed around by a Clippers team missing three of its top rotation pieces. Once Los Angeles answered in the third quarter, the Kings didn’t have much of a response.
The season is only one game old, and there’s still time for Acuff to settle in, for Murray to find his shot, and for the roster to get healthier. But after Wednesday night, Sacramento has a lot to fix - and it did nothing to erase the memory of last season.
The Kings’ injury situation also remains unsettled. Malik Monk is day-to-day with an ankle injury.
Maxime Raynaud will be re-evaluated in one week after a right patellar subluxation. Dylan Cardwell will be re-evaluated in one week because of a left calf strain.
Ben Simmons had successful surgery for a torn right Achilles tendon and will miss the entire 2026-27 season.
In Other News...
Kings Opened With A Blowout Loss And The Postgame Only Got Worse
The Kings did not get the kind of opening-night jolt they were hoping for, falling 121-96 to the Clippers as the new season began with a thud. For Sacramento, it was a rough way to start, with the game getting away early and the scoreboard only reinforcing how much work still sits ahead in the first stretch of the year.
Los Angeles had its own backdrop hanging over the night, with coach Tyronn Lue dedicating the win to owner Steve Ballmer after the league handed down major punishment in the salary cap circumvention case tied to Kawhi Leonard. The Clippers penalty was steep, including a $30 million fine, the loss of five first-round picks and suspensions for Ballmer and two executives, while Leonard ended up traded to the Toronto Raptors. For the Kings, the game itself was bad enough, and the wider postgame only made the loss feel even more lopsided. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Already Face One Frustrating Question After Season Opener
The Kings 2026-27 season started with an early reminder that the margin for error in the West is thin, as Sacramento fell to the Clippers 121-96 in Inglewood. Zach LaVine supplied 28 points to pace the Kings, but Los Angeles had the cleaner answer throughout the night, with Darius Garland scoring 30 and the Clippers bench giving them a steady lift.
What stood out most was how quickly the game slipped away after halftime, when the Clippers widened the gap in the third quarter and kept Sacramento from ever finding a real rhythm. For a team trying to set a tone in the opener, the frustrating part is less the final score than how little time it took for the contest to stop feeling competitive. [Read more 🡒]
Doug Christie Sends Early Warning After Kings' Sloppy Opener
The Kings opened the season with a rough 121-96 loss to the Clippers, and the aftermath sounded less like panic than a coach laying down a baseline. Sacramento was already shorthanded without Malik Monk, who sat because of ankle soreness, and Ben Simmons, who is out for the season with an Achilles injury, but Doug Christie made it clear the missing pieces were only part of the problem. What stood out more was how the Kings let the game drift away with loose execution and too many empty possessions.
Christies early message centered on the habits Sacramento has to sharpen quickly, starting with defensive intensity and cleaner ball movement. He also wants the offense to show more patience instead of forcing the issue before opportunities develop. It is only one game, but for a Kings team trying to establish a reliable standard, the opener offered a blunt reminder that talent alone will not be enough. [Read more 🡒]