Alex Karaban didn’t waste long once he finally got on the floor for the Kings.
After sitting out the California Classic with an ankle sprain, the rookie forward made his Summer League debut in Vegas and needed a few games to shake off the rust. The early returns were quiet, but by the end of the week Karaban had started to look like the player Sacramento clearly wanted badly enough to maneuver for on draft night.
That move came late in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, when Scott Perry turned one of the Kings’ second-round picks into a first-rounder through a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Sacramento used the No. 29 pick on Karaban, a champion combo forward who spent four seasons developing at UConn.
The Kings entered the draft with three picks, including the No. 7 selection that had long been tied to Darius Acuff Jr. as the team’s new starting point guard. But Perry’s trade changed the board and gave Sacramento the chance to lock in Karaban, a decision that made clear how much the team valued him.
Karaban’s first three Summer League games were a slow burn. He was playing almost 24 minutes per night, but the production lagged behind: 2.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game. It was a rough opening stretch for a player trying to find his footing at NBA speed.
Then came the turnaround. Over his last two games, Karaban posted 35 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and one steal, showing the kind of impact Sacramento hoped to see when it made the extra effort to get him. As he settles into his rookie season, he’ll be working alongside Emanuel Sharp, Precious Achiuwa, Dylan Cardwell, and Maxime Raynaud.
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That approach also comes with real limits. The club is operating under tight salary-cap pressure and is close enough to the first apron that adding outside help is far from simple, which helps explain why the roster has been trimmed the way it has. Even as the Kings keep sorting out which combinations fit best, the bigger picture is becoming clearer: this looks like the core they are preparing to carry into the 2026-2027 season. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Fans Should Be Watching Daeqwon Plowden Very Closely
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The bigger question now is where the minutes come from, because the Kings have bodies in front of him and a few different ways to arrange the wing spots. Plowdens best opening appears to be tied to the reshuffling on the perimeter, but he still has to hold off established names and keep proving he belongs in Doug Christies late-game mix if he wants this next step to turn into something more permanent. [Read more 🡒]