The Sacramento Kings had the opportunity to move within three games of the eighth seed last night if they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder which, as most teams are aware, is no easy task.

Prior to tip-off, news broke that De’Aaron Fox would be missing the game due to abdominal tightness and whatever hope fans had for the Kings winning this game quickly began drifting away.

Despite all that, Sacramento gave it their all and fought tooth and nail until the very end. Even though they blew a 17 point lead in the third quarter, it was only a matter of time before OKC got back into the game.

The Kings eventually gave up the lead and ultimately succumbed to the fifth seed Thunder and lost by four.

Even without Fox, the Kings showed their grit last night and to turn a negative into a positive, no one expected the Kings to win this game and at least Fox got his rest so that he’s 100% tonight in a very key matchup against the Grizzlies.

The Kings just recently beat Memphis last Thursday and this time around the Grizzlies are down both Jaren Jackson and Brandon Clarke, a situation Sacramento must capitalize on.

If the Kings do pull away with a win, they will move within three games of the eighth seed, and with Memphis playing the Lakers on Saturday and the Kings taking on the Pistons on Sunday, they have a real chance of moving within two games by the week’s end.

However, it is important not to get too ahead of ourselves. The Kings must take it one game at a time, for even after last night’s defeat, the Kings are still very much in the playoff hunt.

It will be an important weekend in basketball and it seems that the odds just might start falling in the Kings favor.