Feb 11, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Sacramento Kings center Dylan Cardwell (32) leaps for a slam dunk during the second half against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Peter Creveling-Imagn Images
The Kings have gone 5-5 over their last 10 games, and have rocketed up the standings considerably. After spending months with the worst record in the NBA, Sacramento now sits at 17-51, 3rd worst in the NBA, and only a half game behind the 4th-worst Nets. And face the Jazz tonight, another team with every incentive to lose.
Hey, at least DeMar DeRozan and Russell Westbrook are getting their shots up.
**Who**: Sacramento Kings (17-51) vs. Utah Jazz (20-47)
**Where**: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA
**When**: 7:00 PM PT / 10:00 PM ET
**Watch**: NBCSCA / League Pass
If you’re going to have a brutally unwatchable season like the Sacramento Kings are having, you’ve got to maximize the payoff. Winning meaningless games down the stretch this year is akin to pushing hard for a play-in appearance only to get knocked out if the postseason after one game. Until the NBA incentivizes winning, that is our reality.
And I might feel differently if other teams weren’t tanking harder. I might feel differently if the Kings had already shut down their veterans, or at least limited their opportunities. But that isn’t what’s happening in Sacramento– at least not to the extent necessary. Last night in the Kings’ win over the Clippers, 37-year-old Russell Westbrook played nearly 37 minutes. 36-year old DeMar DeRozan played 36 minutes. Even 34-year-old Doug McDermott played 13 minutes for some reason. The aforementioned DeRozan and Westbrook also led the team in shot attempts. This organization can’t even lose right.
The Jazz are in town tonight. Utah has already been fined for tanking this season, so you know exactly where they stand.
It’s the second night of a back-to-back for Sacramento, giving the organization a perfectly timed reason to rest Westbrook and DeRozan after playing heavy minutes vs. the Clippers last night. Will the Kings do the obvious thing here? Tune in and find out.
**Prediction**: Kings 115, Jazz 109.