2006 Sacramento Kings: A Playoff Loss & The End Of An Era

Sacramento had been gradually declining since effectively being robbed of the NBA title in 2002. The Kings lost in the second of the playoffs in both 2003 and 2004, and then made a first-round exit in 2005. The 2006 Sacramento Kings continued the pattern—another first-round loss ended a period of success that went back to the late 1990s, and ushered in a long franchise drought.

The backcourt of Mike Bibby and Bonzi Wells were the foundation. They combined to average 35 points/8 rebounds/13 assists per game. The frontcourt was held down by center Brad Miller, whose per-game averages were 15/8/5. Shareef Abdur-Rahim posted a 12/5 line from his power forward spot, and Kenny Thomas was a reliable rebounder.

Peja Stokavic had been a mainstay, and midway through the year, he was averaging 17ppg. But the franchise, trying to shake things up and reverse the decline, made a big move. They dealt Stokavic to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for Ron Artest (who subsequently changed his name to Metta World Peace). Artest was a top defender, something the Kings needed. And over the final 40 games of the regular season, he also averaged a 17/5/4 line.

Sacramento got off to a poor start, losing five of their first seven games, and then going through a five-game losing streak in late November. By the end of December, the Kings were 12-17 and three games out of the playoff structure.

They showed some signs of life in January, with a blowout win over Phoenix, the eventual 2-seed in the Western Conference. The Kings knocked off the playoff-bound Los Angeles Lakers. But that was followed by losing five of six on a road trip East. Sacramento was still 19-26 and four out of the playoffs at the end of January.

A softer schedule in February helped the Kings find their footing and they improved the record to 26-30, drawing to within two games of the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. In the early part of March, Sacramento went east again and this time they won three of four. That included wins over good playoff teams in Cleveland and New Jersey, each of whom would reach the second round.

When the Kings got back home, they leveraged their momentum to get wins over playoff-bound Memphis, Dallas—the eventual Western Conference champ—and the Lakers. By the end of the month, they were 37-36 and into the 8-spot—albeit by just a single game.

An early April sequence on Wednesday and Friday proved crucial. Sacramento went on the road to defending champion San Antonio and won. They came back home and beat a good L.A. Clippers team. The Kings surged to a final record of 44-38. While they were still the 8-seed, they comfortably made it in by three games.

The Spurs were waiting. Sacramento shot poorly in Game 1 and lost by 34 points. Wells stepped up in Game 2, with 28 points/12 rebounds, and the Kings took this one to overtime. But a 128-119 loss put them in an 0-2 series hole.

It would have been easy to roll over for Tim Duncan, Tony Parker & Co., but Sacramento didn’t. They came home, rebounded well, got good games from Wells and Artest and pulled out a 94-93 win. Then Wells went off for a 25/17 line in a surprisingly easy 102-84 win in Game 4. Suddenly, we had a series on our hands.

But Bibby was not shooting well. He would finish at 35 percent for the series. Wells continued to perform, dropping 38 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in Game 5. But it wasn’t enough to avert a 109-98 loss on the road. And Wells’ 17/11 showing in Game 6 marked him a lonely warrior—the Kings were blown out, 105-83, ending the series and their season.

A lot more than that came to an end following the spring of 2006. Sacramento entered a long period in the basketball wilderness. They didn’t even make the playoffs again until 2023. And they still await their next playoff series win.