Drew Eubanks’ 2026 has gone from bad to brutal in a hurry.
The former Kings center has been hit from every angle this year. Sacramento let him walk after the 2025-2026 season, he landed with the Knicks for the preseason, then tore a pectoral muscle and was waived by New York. For a player who came into the league as an undrafted Spur in 2018 and fought his way from the G League to the NBA, it has been a harsh stretch.
Eubanks’ stop in Sacramento was brief, lasting only the 2025-2026 season, and it came during a miserable year for the Kings. He was brought in to back up Domantas Sabonis after the All-Star’s injury, but the plan never really held together.
Rookie center Maxime Raynaud took over as the starting center, which pushed Eubanks down the depth chart. Then the Kings’ other rookie center, Dylan Cardwell, moved into the backup role behind Raynaud, leaving Eubanks buried on the bench and basically out of the rotation.
His year got worse in March 2026 when he suffered a torn UCL in his left thumb, ending his season. Once the offseason arrived, Sacramento chose not to re-sign him, making him an unrestricted free agent.
That opened the door to a new opportunity with the Knicks, who showed interest in using him as a backup for Karl-Anthony Towns. But the pectoral injury shut that down before it really started, and New York waived him.
There’s no projected timetable for his return, and the injury is the kind that usually requires surgery and a lengthy rehab process. A comeback in time to catch on with another NBA team this season looks slim, and he will likely miss all of 2026-2027.
Still, the story isn’t necessarily finished. Eubanks will be 30 when he’s ready to come back, and players are staying productive into their late 30s and beyond in the modern NBA. He’s still a solid center who could find a spot in the NBA or even the EuroLeague once he’s healthy again.
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What makes the game worth revisiting is less the result than the way it sharpened the rotation conversation. Several Kings players were unavailable because of injury or other reasons, so the minutes were spread around and the team still showed real strength on the offensive glass. For a group trying to sort out roles in the preseason, those details can matter just as much as the final score, even if the record so far leaves plenty of room for concern. [Read more 🡒]
Malik Monk Just Added Intrigue To The Kings' Rookie Guard Buzz
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For the Kings, that kind of comparison only adds to the buzz around a guard group that already has plenty of attention on it. Monk has carved out his own role through pace, touch and shot creation, while Acuff is expected to be thrown right into the mix from day one. The overlap in their games gives Sacramento an interesting backcourt subplot to monitor, especially if Acuff can turn the kind of offensive confidence Monk sees into immediate production. [Read more 🡒]