Darius Acuff Jr. had been fighting the same problem throughout NBA Summer League: the points weren’t coming easy. On Tuesday, though, the former Arkansas guard finally put together the kind of outing that looked a lot more like a breakout than a struggle, even if the Sacramento Kings still got routed by the Brooklyn Nets, 115-83.
Acuff led the Kings with 26 points on 9-of-18 shooting, a clean 50 percent night from the field. He added five assists, a block and a steal, giving Sacramento one of the few bright spots in a game that was otherwise controlled by Brooklyn. Emanuel Sharp was the only other Kings player to reach double figures, finishing with 23.
The matchup also brought Acuff face-to-face with former Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr. for the first time at the professional level, and Brown came out on top this time. Brooklyn selected Brown one spot ahead of Acuff with the No. 6 overall pick in the NBA Draft, and he answered with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, along with two rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Acuff had already gotten the better of Brown and the Cardinals when Arkansas played Louisville in December 2025 at Bud Walton Arena, and he also beat Brown again in the first California Classic Summer League game on July 4. Tuesday flipped the script.
Still, Acuff’s scoring night matters because it came with something his earlier Summer League games had lacked: efficiency. He had been putting up points before, but not in a way that eased concerns about how he’d score at the next level. This performance didn’t erase those questions, but it did offer a cleaner version of what he can bring.
That’s why the 26-point showing feels like more than just a number. It was a step toward the kind of steady offensive game Acuff will need if he’s going to settle in quickly with Sacramento. If his shot keeps coming along, he could work his way into being the face of the Kings’ offense early in the season.
And Acuff isn’t the only former Razorback drawing attention this summer. Meleek Thomas and Adou Thiero have also been thriving in Summer League play, which only adds to the case that Arkansas coach John Calipari still knows how to prepare guards and athletic wings for the NBA.
Acuff came to Arkansas as a lower-rated prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, ranked as low as No. 21 overall, but he worked his way into a different kind of player. He improved as a shooter and developed into an all-around point guard who can create space and get teammates involved. Tuesday was the clearest sign yet that those traits are starting to translate.
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