‘This Franchise Is Dead': Kings Fans Erupt After NBA Draft Lottery

For an entire year, the Sacramento Kings fans watched their team be unserious.

When they wanted them to win, they’d lose hilariously, getting blown out by fellow teams at the bottom of the NBA standings.

When they wanted the Kings to lose to have better odds in an NBA Draft Lottery that could save their franchise, Sacramento looked like a playoff team.

And on Sunday, Sacramento fans faced the fate that they feared all season, sliding outside of the top four and getting the No. 7 pick. Although it’s a deep draft and the Kings should still end up with a blue-chip prospect, the trust between fans and the organization has been burned to a crisp in Sacramento.

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On the Sacramento Kings subreddit, a fan announced his dismay amongst the rest of the disgruntled supporter group.

“Scott Perry has no right to sit there looking disappointed,” they wrote. “He allowed this to happen with the meaningless wins. I hope DeRozan aura farming against tanking teams was worth it. Absolutely a disaster. This franchise is dead.”

Another top comment in the thread, commiserating about the lottery, put the feelings of the reeling fanbase into perspective.

“Sure, a higher pick would be good, but I’ll always remember the day we beat the Nets when they were playing their janitors.”

The anger spread from Reddit to social media, as the Kings announced their draft spot, with fans rolling their eyes at the pomp and circumstance.

Kings fans will hope that the No. 7 pick in the upcoming draft turns out to be a franchise-defining player. But if current optimism shows anything, there might not be many fans in the arena next year to watch that player.

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This story was originally published May 10, 2026 at 10:55 PM.