In 20 years of covering sports, I have seen franchises hit rock bottom. I have seen seasons collapse due to injuries, bad trades, and sheer organizational dysfunction. But what happened to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday morning might be the single worst 24-hour period a front office has endured since I started doing this job.
Domantas Sabonis underwent season-ending surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. ESPN's Shams Charania reported that Sabonis had been rehabbing the meniscus tear during the season, trying to play through it before having surgery now. Then, while that news was still sinking in, Charania reported that Zach LaVine was simultaneously undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a tendon injury in his hand. Both of Sacramento's marquee players. Same day. Both done for the year.
The Sabonis situation speaks to a harder truth: the Kings knew this clock was ticking. Rehabbing and playing through a torn meniscus means the organization was hoping to squeeze every last game out of their best player before the inevitable moment of surrender. That is a gamble that did not pay off.
LaVine's situation is its own complicated chapter. He came to Sacramento this offseason as a centerpiece of the franchise's attempt to build a playoff-caliber roster. He is expensive. He is talented. And he is now heading into an operating room before his first full season with the team has even finished.
Folks, I am not going to sugarcoat what this means: the Kings' season is effectively over. They can play out the remaining games. They can use the time to develop younger players. They can keep showing up - but the version of this team that was supposed to compete for playoff positioning does not exist anymore. Not without Sabonis anchoring the post. Not without LaVine providing that second-star scoring punch.
The Sacramento Kings fan who went viral in 2018 for celebrating the Marvin Bagley pick over Luka Doncic resurfaced on social media Wednesday night, saying simply: "I'm still a Kings fan and I hate my life but it's okay." That may be the most relatable sentence in professional sports right now. That's what sports is all about, folks - and sometimes what sports is all about is heartbreak.
