The Sacramento Kings didn’t just stumble through preseason. They crashed through it.
A five-game exhibition slate ended without a win, capped by Friday night’s 126-97 beatdown at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs. Sacramento was down 24 before the first quarter was even over, and the final score barely captured how one-sided it felt. If San Antonio’s starters had stayed on the floor longer, the margin might have looked even uglier.
Still, preseason is preseason. The Kings can now turn the page and head into the regular season with some clear takeaways from the mess they just survived.
A few players helped themselves. A couple others came out looking shaky.
Darius Acuff Jr. was one of the bright spots. The seventh-overall pick did more than hold his own - he looked steady running Sacramento’s offense.
Through four appearances, the 19-year-old rookie led the team in scoring at 17.3 points per game while hitting 42.4% of his shots and 42.1% from deep. The rough edge was his playmaking-to-turnover ratio: 3.8 assists against 3.5 turnovers per game.
That part needs cleaning up, but it’s early. Acuff Jr. came away looking like a real Rookie of the Year candidate if this level sticks.
Ben Simmons also gave the Kings something useful to latch onto. He only appeared in two preseason games, but Friday’s line was hard to ignore: 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists on 5-of-9 shooting, plus a perfect 4-for-4 at the line.
After sitting out the entire 2025-26 season, Simmons is already shaking off rust, and the Kings are expected to start him on opening night. On the evidence of his limited preseason run, that makes sense.
Another preseason winner was Jonathan Mogbo. The two-way forward put together a strong four-game stretch, averaging 10.8 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.3 steals while shooting 53.3% from the field.
Mogbo may still have an uphill climb for steady rotation minutes, but he forced the conversation. His energy, length, athleticism and defensive versatility stood out enough that Doug Christie may have to carve out real time for him.
If there was a clear disappointment, it was De'Andre Hunter. Sacramento brought him in at last season’s deadline in a deal that sent Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis the other way, but he hasn’t yet shown much in a Kings uniform.
His season ended after just his second game with the team because of a season-ending eye injury, and this preseason didn’t offer much of a bounce-back. In four appearances, Hunter averaged 3.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game, shot 21.1% from the field, and went 0-for-9 from three-point range.
That slump matters because Simmons has already taken his starting spot, and Hunter’s path to minutes looks murky. With Simmons, Domantas Sabonis, Precious Achiuwa, Maxime Raynaud and Dylan Cardwell in the frontcourt mix - plus Mogbo pushing for a role - Hunter may have a tougher time than expected getting on the floor.
The bigger question hovering over all of it is Christie. A winless preseason is never a great look, even with roster availability issues and only one chance to see the full starting group in Friday’s finale. Sacramento’s talent gives the team a better baseline than what the exhibition results showed, but the doubts are real after 0-5.
The Kings won just 22 games last season, and there’s at least some hope they can clear that bar. If they don’t, the pressure on Christie will only grow.
In Other News...
Kings End Preseason With A Problem Fans Cant Ignore
The Kings closed preseason with another rough night, dropping a 126-97 decision to the Spurs and extending a five-game skid that leaves little question about how uneven these final tune-ups were. Sacramento opened with Darius Acuff Jr., Zach LaVine, Keegan Murray, Ben Simmons, and Domantas Sabonis, but San Antonio seized control early and never really let the Kings settle in.
The bigger concern was how one-sided the game became in the areas that usually travel well into the regular season. The Spurs owned the glass 61-38 and buried 17 three-pointers, while Sacramento managed only three, a spread that underscored how far off the Kings looked at both ends. Preseason results only matter so much, but this was the kind of finish fans notice because it exposed the same kinds of issues that can linger if they are not cleaned up quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Opening Lineup Looks Set But One Concern Still Looms
The Kings appear to be closing in on a starting group for the new season, with Darius Acuff Jr., Zach LaVine, Ben Simmons, Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis lining up as the most likely opening five. It is a look that brings more clarity than Sacramento had at times last year, when injuries and constant roster shuffling kept the team from ever settling into much of a rhythm.
Even so, there is still a layer of uncertainty hanging over the roster. Rookie center Maxime Raynaud is already dealing with a preseason injury, and at least two starters are considered possible trade candidates, which means the group the Kings open with may not be the one they carry very far into the season. For a team trying to turn stability into real traction, health and cohesion may end up mattering as much as talent. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Face A Season-Long Tug Of War That Could Reshape Everything
The Kings are heading into the 2026-27 season with a familiar kind of NBA tension, the sort that can define a year before it really gets going. Sacramento wants to keep competing, but it also has to make room for its rookies and sophomores, which means balancing development against the realities of a roster built around veterans whose futures are already looking uncertain.
Zach LaVine, Domantas Sabonis, De'Andre Hunter and Malik Monk all sit in the middle of that equation, giving the Kings useful production now while also carrying the possibility of being moved or departing by the end of the season or shortly after. For a team trying to chart its next phase, the challenge is not just picking a direction, but managing both timelines at once without letting either one derail the other. [Read more 🡒]