Former NBA All-Stars Endorse Kings Rookie Acuff Amidst Hot Start

Entering the season, the Sacramento Kings were hoping the veteran players returning to full health on their roster would result in more winning.

To this point, the Kings have remained in the basement of the Western Conference, sitting at 1-9, and losing three games by 25 or more points.

But, the front office has seemingly struck gold with rookie point guard Darius Acuff Jr., who is a top-11 scorer in the NBA as of Nov. 10 at the ripe age of 19 (25.9 ppg).

On Sunday, Acuff scored 32 points, adding 10 assists, and five rebounds against the Miami Heat, notching his fourth outing with 30 or more points already.

Following the loss, former NBA All-Star point guard Jeff Teague endorsed Acuff, making a bold prediction for the No. 7 overall pick.

"He cold, man. I think he’s cold, I think next year, third year you right he’ll be top three PG in the league," Teague said.

Teague has been a big supporter of Acuff dating back to before the NBA Draft, while picking him as his Rookie of the Year pick after landing in Sac Town.

Acuff has looked the part as a cornerstone piece to build around, running the Kings' offense efficiently, and beginning to find more ways to impact the game with his passing.

After averaging 6.3 assists per game in his first six outings, Acuff has jumped up to nine dimes per contest in November, getting his teammates involved as the game slows down.

Heading into the rest of the season, the front office must identify which players fit alongside Acuff for the future, and where the Kings need to look to hide his weaknesses.

Teague outlined one approach, saying the team should "get a bunch of defenders" around Acuff, allowing him to run the show, using Luka Dončić and Allen Iverson as examples.

While this is not the first time Acuff has been compared to Iverson, the Kings' standout first-year is doing things that even Iverson did not, setting the NBA record for most points by a point guard in their first 10 career games.

On Sunday, another NBA veteran, 3-time All Star guard Gilbert Arenas, talked about Acuff's scoring ability, calling him an "animal."

Arenas talked about Acuff's confident play style at such a young age, while projecting how it will look as he continues to grow into his prime.

"He's going to lead the league in scoring," Arenas said. "Hands down."

Acuff and the Kings are back in action on Tuesday night at 10:00 p.m. against the Orlando Magic.