Former Stanford Cardinal Maxime Raynaud was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the 42nd overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and turned heads as a rookie, averaging 12.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.5 blocks and 0.5 steals per game across an average of 26.5 minutes.

Reports throughout camp have said that Raynaud's offseason work has been evident just by looking at him, and there were expectations that he would reach another level in year two with the Kings.

Those expectations are now on hold as Sacramento is awaiting word on the injury that Raynaud suffered on Saturday night against the Golden State Warriors. 

Towards the end of the second quarter, Raynaud was tangled up in a screen above the three-point line, and at first glance it looked like he'd bumped knees with the Warriors player. However, in slowed-down versions from different angles, it looked as though he went down without any outside contact, which has led to some concern.

Raynaud went down on the court immediately, hands over his face, and the broadcast went to commercial. When it returned, Raynaud was still on the court, getting ready to be loaded into a wheelchair that would take him to the locker room.  

"We're gonna wait and get everything before we speak on [Raynaud's injury]," Kings head coach Doug Christie told reporters after the game. The team has said that it's a right knee injury, but has not disclosed further details. 

Janie McCauley of the Associated Press said that Raynaud left on crutches and was headed to get his MRI. 

The worry here is that if this is an ACL injury, Raynaud could miss significant time during the upcoming 2026-27 season, if not the whole year. ESPN reported that team sources have a growing fear of Raynaud missing time for the foreseeable future. 

The 7-foot-1 center taking his name out of the transfer portal ahead of his senior season and choosing to stick around The Farm for the first year of head coach Kyle Smith's tenure marked a turning point for the program. Smith might have found success that first year without Raynaud on the roster, but it's hard to see anyone else helping to account for the double-double the Frenchman averaged. 

Stanford went 21-14 (11-9 against the ACC) in that first season. While they missed the NCAA tournament, the Cardinal hadn't reached 20+ wins since the 2019-20 season when they went 20-12 under Jerod Haase. 

Stanford's 2024-25 season seemed to mark a return to competitiveness for the program, which was solidified this past season when freshman Ebuka Okorie helped lead the team to a second straight 20-win campaign, with the Cardinal finishing at 20-13. 

Now the goal for Stanford is to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 2013-14 season, and that goal was set in motion not only with coach Smith but also with Raynaud's decision to stick around and showcase what Cardinal basketball could look like in this new iteration.