Welcome to The Kings Beat, a subscriber based independent news source with more than fifteen years of experience covering the Sacramento Kings as credentialed media. Please consider supporting independent content, such as this, with a premium subscription.

Welcome in to your morning cup of Kings…in the evening. The morning took an unexpected turn with a practice to run to. And then things really started to spin out of control. Here is the latest as things turned dark(er) for a Sacramento Kings team that can’t catch a break.

The final 26 games start Thursday night at Golden 1 Center with a visit from the Orlando Magic. The Kings received some positive news with Keegan Murray returning after a 20 game absence due to a moderate ankle sprain. Murray was not only at practice, but he is expected to play on Thursday.

In addition to Murray, De’Andre Hunter also returned to practice after missing time with an eye injury. Hunter said he might have to try wearing goggles for a little while. The team has Hunter listed as out for Thursday, but he is close to a return.

While Murray is back and Hunter is on the mend, the news for some of the other Kings was not so positive. When we walked into the practice facility, Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine and Dylan Cardwell were all missing.

As we were wrapping up with head coach Doug Christie, the news broke that Sabonis underwent surgery on his injured left knee to repair a torn meniscus and is officially out for the season. We’ll have more on the impact of this injury tomorrow.

In addition to Sabonis going under the knife, LaVine was undergoing surgery as the team practiced on Wednesday and he too is out for the rest of the season due to a tendon injury in his right 5th finger.

Lastly, as if things couldn’t get any worse, rookie Dylan Cardwell injured his left ankle while working out at the practice facility on Tuesday. The newly signed Cardwell is expected to miss at least four weeks with a moderate ankle sprain.

It has been a season of bad luck in Sacramento. Not only has the team not performed well, but the injuries have piled up. With Thursday’s news that Sabonis is done for the year after playing just 19 total games, it also comes with the realization that he and Murray never played a single game together this season.

In case you missed the latest Locked On Kings podcast with Gary Gerould, here is the link to the show. The G-Man was wonderful, as always, and his perspective on this season is a must listen.

Here are some of the transcribed highlights from the 30 minute conversation:

🏀 G-Man on how we got here with the Sacramento Kings at 12-44: “I don't understand why. I mean, yes, I know there are various contributing reasons, but no one expected that with this roster there would be this type of angst, frustration, disappointment, you pick the adjective. Nobody saw this coming. And I just— well, maybe somebody did. I don't know. But I just— it's been more than head-scratching. It's been more than perplexing. It is, I think, without question, the most disappointing, frustrating of my now 41 years with the Sacramento Kings. And there's been a lot of disappointments along the way over the years. But as you kind of acknowledged, a couple of years ago, we looked like this organization had turned a corner. At least I thought that was the case.”

🏀 G-Man on Doug Christie: “He puts on a great face. I know it eats him alive. I mean, we all know that, and it, it can't help but take a toll on him. I just hope that it doesn't impact him from a physical, mental, medical standpoint, just hope that somehow he can continue to persevere. There's nobody that's more positive and more believing and more trusting in the team unit and the team concept than Doug Christie. And I want him, as so many of us do, because we know him, we want him to have success. We don't want him to have the angst of long losing streaks and trying to fit square pegs into round holes. And basically, that's, that's what he has with the roster that's, that's been handed to him. And sure, there were a number of good reasons why you hope that some of these things would work out, and for whatever reason, they haven't.

In addition to hanging out with the G-Man for a pod, we were also able to get the band back together for a new episode of The Kings Beat Podcast with Sean Cunningham and Brenden Nunes. Sean is on location for KCRA 3 in Arizona for Spring Training, but we were able to get a show in.

For an unexplained reason, we can’t post live Youtube shows in the same way that we can recorded ones, so here is a link to the latest pod: https://www.youtube.com/live/R_vzpQy1FLw

Markets don’t wait — and year-end waits even less.

In the final stretch, money rotates, funds window-dress, tax-loss selling meets bottom-fishing, and “Santa Rally” chatter turns into real tape. Most people notice after the move.

Elite Trade Club is your morning shortcut: a curated selection of the setups that still matter this year — the headlines that move stocks, catalysts on deck, and where smart money is positioning before New Year’s. One read. Five minutes. Actionable clarity.

If you want to start 2026 from a stronger spot, finish 2025 prepared. Join 200K+ traders who open our premarket briefing, place their plan, and let the open come to them.

Get Year-End Briefing

_{By joining, you’ll receive Elite Trade Club emails and select partner insights. See Privacy Policy.}