Darrius Acuff Jr. didn’t need long to make his presence felt in his first NBA game.
The Kings’ first-round pick opened his preseason career with 19 points, and for long stretches he looked like the one Sacramento player most capable of steadying a rough night. The rookie started against the Lakers in Monday’s 127-103 loss in Sacramento, finishing 8-of-17 from the field with two rebounds and four assists. All but two of his points came in his first 19 minutes.
“They gave me the confidence to go out there and be aggressive,” Acuff said.
Sacramento got an early glimpse of why the Arkansas product already has teammates talking. Precious Achiuwa didn’t hold back when asked about him.
“He’s special,” Kings forward Precious Achiuwa said of Acuff. “He can really score the ball, plays the game at a different pace.”
The Kings needed that spark because the rest of the offense never really found a rhythm. Nique Clifford led Sacramento with 23 points off the bench, going 8-of-13 from the floor and 6-of-10 from the free-throw line. Zach LaVine added nine points on 4-of-6 shooting in just 15 minutes, while Domantas Sabonis, De’Andre Hunter and Achiuwa all started but logged only 10-13 minutes apiece and combined for nine points.
The bigger problem was on the other end. Sacramento hit only four shots from three-point range, while Los Angeles connected on 20 of 44 attempts from deep.
Both teams finished with 25 free throws, but the Lakers made four more field goals. The Kings did win the rebounding battle 46-39, though they also turned it over five more times than Los Angeles.
“I don’t think offense is the problem,” Acuff said. “I think defensively, we just weren’t racking up stops as a team as much as we needed to. I think that’s what separated the game.”
Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 21 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-9 from beyond the arc, and he also hit eight free throws. Quentin Grimes scored 16, Ziaire Williams added 13 from the starting lineup, and Cameron Carr chipped in 19. Chris Manon contributed 12 off the bench.
The game turned fast after Sacramento briefly grabbed a 20-19 lead late in the first quarter on Acuff’s 15-foot pulley jump shot. From there, Los Angeles ripped off a 43-10 run over the next 15 minutes and pushed the margin to 62-30 with 5:08 left in the second quarter.
Jake LaRivia did a lot of damage during that stretch, scoring all 12 of his points off the bench. LaRivia had previously appeared for the Kings in the 2024-25 season, when he played 19 games off the bench.
Sandro Mamukelashvili closed the first half with a 27-foot three-pointer, sending the Lakers into the break up 73-47. He finished with eight points, including two made threes.
Kings coach Doug Christie said he was “very disappointed” by his team’s failure to bring the right level of physicality.
“We want to set the physicality of the game,” Christie said. “We didn’t set it or meet it.”
Sacramento played a better third quarter, outscoring Los Angeles 30-26, and trimmed the deficit to 91-71 on a pair of Daeqwon Plowden free throws with 3:08 left in the period. Plowden ended with 12 points off the bench. The Lakers still controlled the final stretch, though, and a 28-26 fourth quarter kept the margin at 24.
For all the lopsided scoreboard, the night still offered Sacramento one clear positive: Acuff handling his first look at an NBA starting backcourt with confidence.
“His poise is at a really high level,” Christie said. “He’s not ducking the smoke. He’s not scared.”
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There were still the expected rough edges, including some turnovers and shooting inefficiency, but the overall showing hinted at real long-term upside. For a team that has spent recent seasons searching for answers at point guard, Acuffs debut as a starter at least gave the Kings something they have not had there in a while: a reason to believe the position might finally be taking shape. [Read more 🡒]