No, and I'll tell you why. In the end of the season, King will be back for the playoffs. The Knicks may slip and lose their Round 1 buy if Moses Malone doesn't put the team on his back, but in the end, they will be fighting come end of April and King will be fine. Thompson & Cook getting hurt... not only is that TWO starters on their team going out for a month.. but they have to worry about the surging HEALTHY Clippers who are coming up. We all thought the wheels would fall off the Warriors when they kinda blew things up... but they didnt and they are still hanging in there... that could be a big problem for the Sonics if they go on even a 3-4 game skid without their two big pieces. Of their next 10... there are 3-4 cakewalk games & the rest are against teams in the playoff hunt... including Warriors and Kings (twice away). All teams of whom they are jockeying for playoff positioning. While there is some depth to accommodate the loss of Cook & Thompson, those are some substantial minutes being replaced.Mike Lowry wrote: Wed Aug 27, 2025 2:24 am Will the Bernard King injury be more impactful than the Mychal Thompson and Darwin Cook injuries?
What are the implications?
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The King injury is by far the more impactful injury. King is such a vital player for a definite playoff team that would greatly benefit from a bye in the playoffs. The injury is going to make the Knicks play in the first round, which they should still win, but that definitely depends on matchups. Also, that opens up the door for another injury rather than some rest at the end of the season for their players to heal up.Mike Lowry wrote: Wed Aug 27, 2025 2:24 am Will the Bernard King injury be more impactful than the Mychal Thompson and Darwin Cook injuries?
What are the implications?
Rules: 1 point if you give thoughtful answers, which I will award after the timer ends for responses. The timer ends for responses at the moment the corresponding week's Sim is run.
Note: Use approximately 5 sentences as your bare minimum for 1 point. If you write 3 long, complex sentences, you'll still get a point. If you write 5, 3 word sentences, you will not get a point. Don't @ me.
Due: Due by the deadline for sim 11

The Bernard King injury's impact is probably to knock the Knicks out of the #2 seed and a first-round bye... and into the #3 seed which means a matchup with the #6 seed, which they should win - as others have said, King should be back in time for the playoffs. So all it really costs them home court in round 2 versus the Bullets.The Cook and Thompson injuries probably cost the Sonics the #4 seed, so they won't have home court in the 4-5 matchup. But it won't meaningfully affect them in Round 2 (they wouldn't have home court anyway) and beyond.Mike Lowry wrote: Wed Aug 27, 2025 2:24 am Will the Bernard King injury be more impactful than the Mychal Thompson and Darwin Cook injuries?
What are the implications?
Rules: 1 point if you give thoughtful answers, which I will award after the timer ends for responses. The timer ends for responses at the moment the corresponding week's Sim is run.
Note: Use approximately 5 sentences as your bare minimum for 1 point. If you write 3 long, complex sentences, you'll still get a point. If you write 5, 3 word sentences, you will not get a point. Don't @ me.
Due: Due by the deadline for sim 11
I think the Thompson and Cook injuries are more significant, because going into sim 12, Mark Eaton is all of a sudden hobbling across the finish line, too! They're tied with the kings for 4th in the conference, and they have two away games against the Kings in the final sim. This almost certainly places them in 5th instead of 4th, ceding homecourt advantage to the Kings in the playoffs, which could have dire implications for a 1st round exit. Sonics went into this season looking like a juggernaut to me, and this outcome must certainly be disappointing.Will the Bernard King injury be more impactful than the Mychal Thompson and Darwin Cook injuries?
What are the implications?