Update: 7:45 p.m.

Another one down. Another successful day for the unintentional tank. The Sacramento Kings lost to the Houston Rockets 121-95 Wednesday.

The Kings managed to keep it close into halftime, but then the Rockets won the third quarter 36-19 and that was it. Houston out-rebounded the Kings 62-32. Yikes. The Rockets also won fast break points 30-7 and points in the paint 78-46.

Maxime Raynaud played 32 minutes and finished with 25 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. Malik Monk added 25 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds. Zach LaVine only played 19 minutes and had 2 points. Keegan Murray had a quiet scoring night (5 points) but did have 11 rebounds. Russell Westbrook and DeMar DeRozan also both played under 30 minutes. Hmmm.

The Kings are now 5-17, on a four-game losing streak and in 14th place in the Western Conference.

From Earlier Preview: 

We’re 25% of the way through the 2025-26 NBA season, and for this Kings fan, the NBA Draft can’t come soon enough. But alas, there is more basketball to be played.

Who: Sacramento Kings (5-16) vs. Houston Rockets (13-5)
Where: Toyota Center, Houston, TX
When: 5:00 PM PT / 8:00 PM ET
Watch: NBCSCA / League Pass

Kings basketball is back after a couple of much-needed days off. How will the rested Kings look against the Rockets tonight? My bet is not great, but I’m not a gambler. The Rockets will be missing a few key players, namely Steven Adams (questionable) and Tari Eason (out) while Fred VanVleet remains on the shelf following his ACL injury. The Kings are still missing Domantas Sabonis, Dennis Schroder is questionable, and Malik Monk is probable.

I’m running out of ways to say I despise watching this old basketball team get bashed on a nightly basis while younger players like Keon Ellis, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, and Devin Carter ride the bench. And yes, a few members of this younger group might creep towards 20 minutes of playing time off the bench in rare circumstances, but we should be demanding more at this point. The veterans aren’t getting it done.

Keon Ellis played 7:27 and 6:13 in the last two losses. Devin Carter hasn’t played in the last 9 games. Nique Clifford is averaging 10 MPG over the last 9 games, the Kings have gone 2-7. Raynaud has played the most out of the bunch, largely due to the Sabonis injury, and he’s been pretty good! But Doug Christie is still starting Drew Eubanks. The Kings are 3-7 when Eubanks starts.

And yet, I can’t look away. I won’t look away. Their incompetence confounds me.

Prediction: Kings 123, Rockets 114.