Sacramento gambles on lottery steal Darius Acuff Jr. to ignite a top-heavy roster, balancing the rookie’s star potential against hefty veteran contracts and DeMar DeRozan’s departure.
Outside of drafting reigning SEC Player of the Year Darius Acuff Jr. with the No. 7 overall pick, the Sacramento Kings have had a relatively quiet offseason.
Much of this is due to the lucrative contracts of Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis, who are set to make nearly $100 million combined this upcoming year.
On Monday, Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey released his list of each team's offseason grades, with the Kings coming in at a B-.
"And even with relatively little action on the roster this summer, the Kings pass for simply lucking into Darius Acuff Jr. with the seventh overall pick," Bailey wrote. "His defense and shot selection appeared to need plenty of work at summer league, but he has star and lead playmaker potential. For a team without any other top-flight prospects, Acuff's scoring and passing will generate a lot of hope this season."
Alongside LaVine, Acuff projects as a dynamic backcourt partner, bringing high-level shot making and playmaking ability to a Kings team needing both.
As Bailey mentioned, Acuff's efficiency was not great during the 2026 NBA Summer League, but he still averaged 19 points, 5.3 assists, and one steal per game.
Acuff delivered multiple pinpoint passes to his teammates throughout his minutes, making strong reads out of pick-and-roll actions and setting up shooters on the perimeter.
The biggest departure for Sacramento is six-time All Star DeMar DeRozan, who remains a free agent after negotiating a buyout with his previous team.
DeRozan was a solid veteran presence for the Kings' rookies last season, but with Sacramento getting younger and more guard-focused, a reunion grew more unlikely.
Losing a player with DeRozan's consistent scoring ability stings, but getting back Keegan Murray and De'Andre Hunter on the wings will be a nice addition.
Both young forwards missed significant time with injury last season.
Moving forward, Sacramento is playing a waiting game, as the front office evaluates it's veterans and how they fit next to the new additions.
"Finding trades for DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis would've earned the Sacramento Kings more points, but there simply may not be any suitors for any of them. So Sacramento had to settle on releasing DeRozan and keeping the other two," Bailey wrote. "Ideally, one or both will play well enough between now and February for Sacramento to squeeze a little value out of them in deadline deals."
At KingsRoundtable, we have frequently covered LaVine as a potential midseason trade or buyout candidate, as there are definitely questions regarding he and Acuff's defensive shortcomings when playing alongside one another.
But, LaVine is a proven scorer in his own right, and could be a great 1-2 punch alongside the Kings' presumed point guard of the future.
Second-year big man Maxime Raynaud is also an intriguing prospect, as he looked great during the FIBA qualifiers and in limited minutes in Las Vegas.
Navigating his minutes alongside Sabonis will be a slow burn for head coach Doug Christie, but he projects as a longterm pick-and-roll threat alongside Acuff.
