When Will Kings Break 20-Plus-Year Playoff Series Win Drought?

Playoff success has eluded the Sacramento Kings for 20-plus years, sparking the age-old question: when will the team win a playoff series?

Sacramento's last playoff series victory happened in 2004, when they defeated the Dallas Mavericks 4-1 in the first round and the No. 1-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves in a seven-game series.

The Kings faced the Los Angeles Lakers in one of the most memorable Western Conference Finals in NBA history, as it also went to seven games.

Game 7, what most fans believe are the greatest two words in sports, lived up to its expectations. Mike Bibby, who led the team with 29 points, knocked down the game-tying free throws, sending the game into overtime.

Bibby's efforts weren't enough to push the Kings over the Lakers in the extra period, as they lost the quarter 12-6.

That heartbreaking end extended into a 16-year playoff drought that De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis broke in the 2022-23 season. The duo almost defeated the Golden State Warriors in the first round, but Steph Curry's 50-point performance sent his team into the semifinals.

These kinds of streaks rarely end early for Sacramento, but there's a chance it could end next season if everything falls into place.

General manager Scott Perry drafted a potential franchise guard in Darius Acuff Jr., who has high expectations for his rookie year on a losing team. Acuff is key to the team's future success, as he can become the cornerstone Perry builds around for the foreseeable future.

Perry is also preparing to make a big splash next offseason. He will finally have the financial flexibility needed to make free-agent acquisitions and could open up to max cap space.

Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren is at the top of his target list, with mutual interest dating back to the start of free agency.

Duren is reportedly seeking $40 million annually in his rookie extension with the Pistons, but they are offering $35 million. Perry sees the 22-year-old as a max player and is willing to give him the contract he wants.

Perry's prized target would have to risk next season by signing the $9.6 million qualifying offer, which grants him a de facto no-trade clause and makes him an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

The Kings have a solid foundation in the works to give themselves a chance not only to make the playoffs once more, but to win a series and break another historic franchise drought.