After a long offseason, the Sacramento Kings are ready to play a meaningful basketball game again. The Kings went winless in their five-game preseason slate, casting doubt on what might come in the 2026-27 season, but they have a chance to start the season with a divisional road win against the L.A. Clippers and restore the fanbase's faith.
Last season, the team was decimated by injuries. For them to surpass their 22-win mark from last year, they will certainly need to have better injury luck, but they are not off to a great start. Let's take a look at every injury to monitor heading into opening night against the Clippers.
Kings injury report
Heading into their season opener, the Kings have ruled out three players and listed one as questionable, as their injury woes from last year seem to be carrying over. The Kings' full injury report against the Clippers:
Malik Monk - QUESTIONABLE (left ankle soreness)
Dylan Cardwell - OUT (left calf strain)
Maxime Raynaud - OUT (right patella subluxation)
Ben Simmons - OUT (right Achilles tendon rupture/tear)
Of course, we knew the Kings would be without Cardwell, Raynaud, and Simmons for Wednesday's season opener. The young center duo is expected to miss the first couple of weeks of the season, putting a significant hole in Sacramento's frontcourt rotation. Unfortunately for the Kings, Simmons will be on this list for the entire year, as he suffered a season-ending injury just three days before opening night.
Monk is the one to monitor leading up to tip-off on Wednesday night, as the 28-year-old guard did not appear in preseason and finally returned to practice this week. There is obviously a chance that he suits up, and the Kings might need the bench spark to pick up a win against the Clippers.
To even the playing field, the Clippers are also dealing with some significant injuries ahead of the season opener.
Clippers injury report
The Clippers have ruled out five players against the Kings, including All-Star forward Brandon Ingram, who will have to wait to make his L.A. debut. A full look at the Clippers' injury report:
Bradley Beal - OUT (right knee injury management)
Brandon Ingram - OUT (right heel surgery)
Jordan Miller - OUT (left rotator cuff surgery)
Yanic Konan Niederhauser - OUT (right Lisfranc surgery)
Max Strus - OUT (right plantar fascia tear)
While these absences certainly give the Kings more hope of pulling out a road win to start the season, the Clippers are still a dangerous team. L.A. went 2-1 in three preseason games, led by All-Star guard Darius Garland.
The Kings will still have trouble against the Clippers, but they should remain confident heading into their first game of the season. This is obviously a winnable game for the Kings, and we can hope they use a rare talent advantage to walk out of L.A. on a high note.
The Kings and Clippers are set to tip off at 7:30 p.m. PT in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
Follow us on Facebook and X for the latest Sacramento Kings news.
Add us as a preferred source on Google