The Sacramento Kings will host Rookie of the Year finalist Donovan Mitchell and the Utah Jazz in their season and home opener at Golden 1 Center on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m.
The Kings will be featured on national television with a TNT Sports broadcast from Golden 1 Center as Sacramento plays host to the LA Clippers on Thursday, Nov. 29. Sacramento’s early slate includes seven of its first 10 contests on the road before returning to Golden 1 Center for a homestand welcoming LeBron James and the new-look L.A. Lakers on Saturday, Nov. 10. Additional marquee contests during the opening stanza present matchups in Houston against reigning MVP James Harden and the Rockets on Saturday, Nov. 17 and a visit to Golden 1 Center by perennial MVP candidate Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, Nov. 19.
A full helping of noteworthy contests complement the holiday season, beginning with a first installment of the annual northern California I-80 series versus the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors at Oakland on Saturday, Nov. 24, followed by home tilts versus Most Improved Player Award recipient Victor Oladipo and Eastern Conference hopeful Indiana Pacers (Dec. 1). Road matchups with 2018 No.1 overall pick DeAndre Ayton, Devin Booker and Pacific Division rival Phoenix Suns (Dec. 4), at Indiana (Dec. 8) and a stop in the Windy City against the Chicago Bulls (Dec. 10) set the table for yuletide home games hosting the Warriors (Dec. 14), Thunder (Dec. 19), Grizzlies (Dec. 21) and New Orleans Pelicans (Dec. 23).
The Kings ring in 2019 with eight of 11 games at home following Christmas, highlighted by clashes with Isaiah Thomas, Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets (Jan. 3) and second stops at Golden 1 by the Lakers (Dec. 27) and Warriors (Jan. 5) before Damian Lilllard, CJ McCollum and the Trail Blazers (Jan. 14) round out the homestand as Sacramento girds itself for a season-long six-game road trip from Jan. 17 thru Jan. 27. The 12-day jaunt yields to the season’s longest homestand upon their return, featuring contests versus 2018 Rookie of the Year Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and the upstart Philadelphia 76ers (Feb. 2), Rockets (Feb. 6), DeMar Derozan and the Spurs (Feb. 4) a lone visit by the Miami Heat (Feb. 8). The docket goes dark for the annual All-Star break following a matchup with the Nuggets in the Mile High City (Feb. 13).
Sacramento winds down the regular season with a balanced calendar, playing 15 of its remaining 25 contests at Golden 1 Center. Curry, Durant and the Warriors host the first of three post-break road contests for the Kings (Feb. 21), including layovers in Oklahoma City (Feb. 23) and Minnesota (Feb. 25) before a home quartet boasting notable matchups against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks (Feb. 27), an annual cameo by the New York Knicks (Mar. 4) and a brush with Eastern Conference finalist Boston Celtics (Mar. 6). Keynote contests during the stretch run feature a northeast road excursion culminating with stops in Beantown (Mar. 14) and the City of Brotherly Love (Mar. 15) and subsequent west coast trip calling for visits to the Lakers (Mar. 24), New Orleans (Mar. 28) and Houston (Mar. 30). The Kings will host the Pelicans in the regular season home finale (April 7) and conclude the schedule in earnest at Portland three nights later (April 10).
Single-game tickets will go on sale to the public in September. Fans can sign up for access to an exclusive presale and enter to win a VIP Opening Night experience, courtesy of VSP, by visiting Kings.com/OpeningNight. Weekly winners will receive Kings jerseys and Nike sunglasses, and a Grand Prize winner will receive four lower level tickets to the Opening Night game versus Utah, four Kings jerseys, four pairs of Nike sunglasses and a meet and greet with a Kings personality.
Fans can secure seats to the most popular matchups and save on single-game prices by committing to a ticket plan with as few as 10 games. Those interested are invited to RSVP for an Aug. 22 Open House at Golden 1 Center, where these plans will first be made available for purchase. Visit http://www.mykingsevents.com/OpenHouse0822 to RSVP.
KEY FACTS ABOUT THE SACRAMENTO KINGS 2018-19 SCHEDULE
- By month, the schedule breaks down as follows: October (3 home, 5 away = 8 total), November (7 home, 6 away = 13 total), December (8 home, 7 away = 15 total), January (8 home, 7 away = 15 total), February (6 home, 4 away = 10 total), March (6 home, 9 away = 15 total), April (3 home, 2 away = 5 total).
- As part of league’s continued attempts to augment player rest, the Kings engage in two fewer back-to-back sets from a season ago, will not play four games in five nights for the second consecutive season and suit up for five contests in a seven-night stretch on only one occasion (reduced from three occurrences in 2016-17 when the NBA instituted a more rest-focused schedule).
- By day, the schedule breaks down as follows: Monday (6 home, 6 away = 12 total), Tuesday (3 home, 6 away = 9 total), Wednesday (9 home, 4 away = 13 total), Thursday (6 home, 5 away = 11 total), Friday (6 home, 6 away = 12 total), Saturday (6 home, 7 away = 13 total), Sunday (5 home, 7 away = 12 total).
- The Kings longest homestand features six games on one occasion: Wednesday, Jan. 30 thru Sunday, Feb. 10, hosting Atlanta (Jan. 30), Philadelphia (Feb. 2), San Antonio (Feb. 4), Houston (Feb. 6), Miami (Feb. 8) and Phoenix (Feb. 10).
- Sacramento embarks on its longest road trip of six games from Thursday, Jan. 17 thru Sunday, Jan. 27 with stops in Charlotte (Jan. 17), Detroit (Jan. 19), Brooklyn (Jan. 21), Toronto (Jan. 22), Memphis (Jan. 25) and L.A. Clippers (Jan. 27).
- Of the team’s 14 back-to-back sets, one is of the home-home variety, seven are away-away, three represent the away-home category and three are home-away.
- Sacramento’s 41-game home schedule features 17 weekend contests at Golden 1 Center (six games on Fridays, six on Saturdays and five on Sundays).
- The Kings tote a 23-10 mark in home openers during the Sacramento-era (1985-present), including a 15-5 record since 1998-99.
Only once in franchise history have the Kings played Utah in a season opener, outlasting the Jazz 98-91 on Oct. 11, 1980 at Kemper Arena in Kansas City.