Mike Bibby didn’t exactly tiptoe around the conversation surrounding the Kings’ rookie surge.
Before Sacramento’s win over Dallas on Monday, the former Kings guard and franchise favorite weighed in on the chatter around Darius Acuff Jr. and Domantas Sabonis during an appearance on the Straight Game Podcast. His concern wasn’t just about shot volume. It was about what happens when a young player is firing away while the team is still trying to find its footing.
“I think I might have seen Sabonis have like four shots last game,” Bibby said. “With Sabonis, he’s best with the ball in his hands, when he’s making plays for other guys and doing that point guard stuff.
I think he’s at best in that situation. You put those guys to the side, let’s see how long this is gonna take till everybody’s disgruntled.
With losing on top of that, that’s not gonna have a good outcome.”
Acuff Jr. has been impossible to ignore in his first six starts. He’s taken 144 shots and posted a 32.3% usage rate, a workload that puts him in rare company. Among players with five games at a higher usage rate are Luka Doncic at 40.0% and Victor Wembanyama at 33.8%.
The rookie backed up the numbers again Monday in Sacramento’s 115-100 win over the Mavericks, finishing with 25 points, six assists and five rebounds in 37 minutes. It marked the third straight game in which Acuff Jr. posted at least 25 points, five rebounds and five assists, making him the first rookie to do that since Luka Donic in 2019.
Still, the conversation around the Kings hasn’t been limited to what’s happening on the box score. Sabonis’ own comments from October have resurfaced as part of the discussion, especially his push for more ball movement.
“Move the ball. Get me the ball more so I can swing it and get guys open. You know, we took a lot of one-pass shots, pick-and-roll shots without passing the ball; you know, those numbers are really high, and I feel like we’re best when we kind of mix it up - point guard shoots, point guard hits the corner, point guard hits me, then I can make the read - that’s where I’m best at.”
Around the team, the reaction has been to watch how Acuff Jr. and Sabonis work together on the floor and on the bench, paying close attention to how they communicate without the ball. From the outside, the situation has been treated like something delicate.
But outside views only go so far. The real answer, as always, will come on the court.
Sacramento’s next test arrives Wednesday against the Los Angeles Lakers.
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It was an uncomfortably direct assessment for a team that has spent much of the season trying to find its footing on that end of the floor. The Kings sit 28th in defensive rating, allowing 119.4 points per 100 possessions, and comments like LaVines only sharpen the pressure on a group that knows the problem is bigger than one bad night. [Read more 🡒]
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Kings Rookie Darius Acuff Jr. Is Drawing A Wild Allen Iverson Comparison
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On Sactown Sports, longtime Allen Iverson fan Kenny Caraway said Acuffs scoring burst and playmaking bring Iverson to mind, while making clear it was more a nod of admiration than a forecast of where the comparison might ultimately lead. For the Kings, it is the kind of early buzz that comes with a high pick who already looks comfortable carrying an offense, even if the conversation around him is only just beginning. [Read more 🡒]