Stepping up in Rudy Gobert’s absence, the Kings' rising center dominated the paint to fuel France’s redemption tour while auditioning for a primary starting role in Sacramento.
Maxime Raynaud posted another efficient performance in France's 84-69 victory over Sweden on Sunday, extending the team's group play record to 7-1.
Raynaud scored 13 points on 6-for-7 from the field, including 1-for-1 from three, in 18 minutes off the bench. He stepped up in Rudy Gobert's absence, who sat out the game. It's his second straight double-digit scoring outing, dropping 12 points in France's blowout win over Slovenia in nine minutes.
He's playing a crucial role in helping his nation return to the World Cup and rewrite an embarrassing early first-round exit in 2023. France posted a 1-2 record in Group H -- featuring Canada, Latvia and Lebanon.
The nation sealed its fate by opening with back-to-back losses to Canada (95-65) and Latvia (88-86). Self-inflicted mistakes led to France's downfall against Latvia, as its opponent held them to 12 points in the fourth and roared back to victory with 26 points.
France is bouncing back in 2026 with a towering big man rotation of Victor Wembanyama (7-foot-3), Rudy Gobert (7-foot-2) and Raynaud (7-foot-1).
Back-to-back impressive games are a positive sign for the Sacramento Kings, who will rely on him for much of their success.
A late explosion in the second half of the season led to Raynaud winning Western Conference Rookie of the Month honors and earning an All-Rookie Second Team nod. He scored a career-high 32 points against his teammate, Wembanyama, and the San Antonio Spurs on March 17.
Before playing for France this offseason, Raynaud played a couple of games for the Kings in the Las Vegas summer league. The second-year center debut with a 20-point, 12-rebound double-double against the Washington Wizards.
His three-point shooting looked much improved, converting two threes on five attempts. Spacing the floor is Raynaud's next improvement as an offensive player and allows Sacramento to run double-big lineups.
Raynaud has built a legitimate case to start for the Kings, competing against De'Andre Hunter for the fourth starting role. He and Domantas Sabonis would create a towering frontcourt that can secure possessions by dominating the glass, but their skill sets are too similar.
That's where the three-point shooting comes in. He could comfortably space out to the three-point line, giving Sabonis open areas to work with and take advantage of the opportunities created for him.
Injuries prevented coach Doug Christie from experimenting with lineups to see what works and what doesn't. He should have that this season with the team's top players returning from injury.
Raynaud's performance in the World Cup qualifiers is preparing him early for the regular season, in hopes of helping Sacramento win games, like he's doing for France.
