LAS VEGAS -- Darius Acuff Jr. has already given the Kings a taste of why Sacramento believes he can become the face of the franchise. The No. 7 overall pick has flashed star-level talent in summer league, but the rough edges are showing too, especially when it comes to efficiency.
That was on display again Sunday in a loss to the undefeated Washington Wizards, who were powered by No. 1 pick AJ Dybantsa. Dybantsa put up 23 points on 6-of-15 shooting, added seven rebounds, two assists, three steals and two blocks in 24 minutes, and followed up the 27 points he scored in his summer league debut Thursday.
Acuff, meanwhile, finished with 12 points on 4-of-14 shooting, missed all four of his 3-point tries, and added four assists and five turnovers in 28 minutes. The scoring bursts are there, but the consistency hasn’t caught up.
Acuff didn’t sugarcoat it after Sacramento’s win Thursday, when he scored 19 points. "I got to be better, though," Acuff said after scoring 19 points in Sacramento's win Thursday.
"I'm playing terrible. Too inefficient.
I got to make more shots in a row and get my teammates involved more."
His defense has also shown some shaky moments, though the Kings are still banking on growth there as he gets more reps.
Alex Karaban, the Kings’ No. 29 pick, finally got on the board Sunday after missing all three games of the California Classic while recovering from an ankle sprain. He made his official debut Thursday, but that night didn’t go the way he wanted: zero points in 24 minutes, 0 of 6 from the field, 0 of 4 from deep, with two rebounds, one assist, three turnovers and one block.
Against Washington, Karaban scored his first summer league points, knocking down one 3-pointer in 23 minutes after attempting just three shots. The Kings aren’t sounding alarms about the scoring.
They expect that part to come. What they like is the rest of his game - the defense, the smarts, the little things.
Maxime Raynaud put it this way after the loss: "I'm happy that he got his first summer league points today," Raynaud said after the loss. "He also makes a lot of winning plays. Obviously, I don't know if he shows in the box score, but his activity on the offensive board, I think that's what opened some rebounds for Dylan [Cardwell] and I, even for himself, actually, He communicates a lot, and I mean, he's able to be a good shooter to get down here as well.
"We've only been together for like what five, six days. Me, personally, only two. But I'm pretty sure it's like you know, as we spend more time together, it's gonna be good fun."
Kings summer league coach Chris Darnell echoed that same message, saying Karaban doesn’t need the offense spoon-fed to him. "I'm just trying to tell him to play his game," Darnell said.
"Like, hey, maybe last game we didn't make shots, but we know he's a high-level shot maker. He's a high-level connector, and one of those guys that created damages from this. ...
He's a guy that doesn't need a play called for him. He doesn't need a certain action.
Like he's really good at reading the floor, reading the spacing on the floor. Very smart defender.
It's probably on me that I can put him in spots to be more aggressive.
"But overall, I think he's a guy that just impacts the game again without any direct action. He's just almost like a coach on the floor, just from the way he sees the game, the spacing."
Emanuel Sharp had his own shooting issues Sunday, going for seven points on 2-of-8 shooting and 1 of 6 from 3-point range in 22 minutes. Even so, the Kings’ second-round pick has been the most consistently impressive rookie on both ends of the floor so far.
That’s the summer league grind in a nutshell: flashes, mistakes, adjustments, and more chances to sort it out.
In Other News...
John Wall Just Sent Kings Fans A Big Darius Acuff Message
Darius Acuff Jr. has already drawn some real attention in Sacramento, and it is easy to see why the Kings are intrigued. The former Calipari guard arrived with a reputation as a promising young scorer, and he fits neatly into the kind of long-view talent evaluation teams lean on during Summer League, especially when a players ceiling seems to matter as much as the early returns.
John Wall only added to that buzz with the kind of endorsement that tends to travel fast around the league. A fellow Calipari alumnus and former NBA All-Star, Wall put Acuff in rare company as a scorer, which is the sort of praise that can stick with a young guard even as he continues to find his footing in Las Vegas. For Kings fans, it is another reminder that Acuffs name is already starting to come up in bigger conversations, even if the on-court production has not fully caught up yet. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Loss May Have Exposed A Bigger Problem Than Expected
The Kings perfect Summer League run ended in a 104-85 loss to Washington, and the scoreline came with a reminder that summer success can be fragile once the competition tightens. Maxime Raynaud still gave Sacramento plenty to like in his debut, finishing with 20 points and 12 rebounds, while the team also got a look at a two-big setup by starting Raynaud alongside Dylan Cardwell.
What stood out just as much was how quickly the game tilted away from Sacramento once Washington found rhythm and pressure. Darius Acuff Jr. had a rough shooting night, and the Kings never really solved the defensive issues that let the Wizards keep control, leaving this loss to feel less like a blip and more like a useful warning sign for what still needs cleaning up. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Just Gave An Undrafted Rookie A Real Chance To Impress
Elias Ralph has already taken a meaningful step toward a pro basketball future, landing a spot on the Kings Summer League roster after going through a workout with the team about a month earlier. The former Pacific forward, who went undrafted, said he is grateful for the chance and is treating the summer as a chance to learn, improve and show he belongs in a professional setting.
Ralph has not yet appeared in a Summer League game, and he was out during the California Classic, but the opportunity alone gives him a platform to keep building. For a player trying to turn a strong college run into a real career, the next stretch is about staying ready, absorbing everything he can and hoping the work eventually opens a door to a G League role and, down the line, an NBA roster spot. [Read more 🡒]