The Sacramento Kings are heading into 2026-27 with the kind of outside noise that usually comes when a team is expected to sit near the bottom of the standings. But buried under all that low-end forecasting is a simpler question: what if Sacramento is better than the projections say?
That possibility won’t take much to materialize. A lot of people already have the Kings finishing near the basement, and last season’s fit still left plenty to be desired. Even so, the roster looks more balanced than it did a year ago, and that gives this team a path to being more than a punchline.
Three numbers, in particular, could end up telling the whole story.
The first is Keegan Murray’s three-point percentage. That’s one of the biggest swing factors on the roster.
Murray burst onto the scene as a rookie by setting a then-record with 206 made threes, but his outside shooting has gone in the wrong direction every season since. Last year, in an injury-hit campaign, he sank just 27.7% from deep.
He’s at 36.5% for his career from three, and even getting back to that level would probably make everyone around Sacramento breathe a little easier. Murray does a lot of things that help a team win, so he doesn’t need to live near 40% from outside to matter.
Still, his ceiling - and the Kings’ ceiling with him - is tied to whether those shots fall. If he gets all the way back to the 41.1% he posted in his rookie year, Sacramento suddenly has a very different kind of season on its hands.
Then there’s Zach LaVine, and the question around him is less about skill than usage. Before he opted into his $49 million player option, the Kings had made it clear he wouldn’t have a guaranteed role if he returned.
He opted in anyway, and because Sacramento couldn’t find a trade partner, the two sides are stuck together for now. At least for another season.
Or maybe not even that long.
LaVine could still be dealt at the deadline, which makes his games played one of the more revealing stats on the roster. Will he be out there every night as a major part of the rotation and scheme?
Will Sacramento use him sparingly to preserve his value? Or will the Kings decide to bench him and let him ride out the expiring deal?
However it plays out, LaVine’s availability will say plenty about where this season is headed.
The biggest wild card, though, might be rookie Darius Acuff Jr. Sacramento is handing him the keys, and that means volume. He should have every chance to fire away at 15-plus shots a game.
What he does with that freedom could tilt the season. If Acuff comes close to the 48.4% from the field and 44.0% from three he posted last season at Arkansas, the Kings could climb fast. If he struggles the way he did in Summer League and needs time to settle into the NBA, the opposite could happen just as quickly.
The Kings don’t need Acuff to be perfect right away, but they do need to see signs that the offensive upside is real. That’s the bet in Sacramento.
If Murray shoots it well, if LaVine’s role becomes clearer, and if Acuff hits the ground running, the Kings might end up surprising a lot of people. If not, the win total could look a lot like last year’s disappointment.
In Other News...
Kings Rebuild Just Got A Brutal Reality Check From ESPN
ESPNs preseason projections landed hard on the Sacramento Kings, and not just because the forecast puts them at the bottom of the Western Conference. The broader picture around the team is already shaky, with a rebuild centered on a younger core and a steady drumbeat of trade speculation leaving plenty about the roster unresolved as the next season approaches.
Against that backdrop, the projection only sharpens the scrutiny on where the Kings are headed compared with an older Western rival trying to manage health and banking on the rise of rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, who was named 2026 Summer League MVP. Sacramentos path is still taking shape, but the message from ESPN was blunt: the Kings have a long climb ahead, and the margin for optimism is thin until the front office gives this rebuild more definition. [Read more 🡒]
Zach LaVine Just Put The Kings In An Awkward Spot
Zach LaVines decision to pick up his player option for the 2026-27 season gives Sacramento at least one more season of clarity on paper, but it doesnt exactly solve the bigger question hanging over the roster. The Kings have been leaning into a younger timeline, adding prospects and trying to build toward something more sustainable, while LaVine remains the kind of established scorer who usually fits a team trying to win right now.
His recent comments only sharpened the contrast. LaVine said he wants to compete for a championship, and that goal does not line up neatly with where Sacramento appears to be headed in the near future. Unless the Kings accelerate their plans or explore a trade, they may be stuck trying to balance a veteran with win-now ambitions against a rebuilding group still trying to find its footing. [Read more 🡒]
Darius Acuff Is Already Forcing A Big Kings Future Debate
Darius Acuff Jr. has already become one of the more interesting long-view topics around Sacramento, even before he has had a chance to fully settle into an NBA rhythm. The rookie point guards Summer League play came with the usual growing pains, but the larger view from analysts and even his former coach is that he has a real chance to matter for the Kings in the seasons ahead, the kind of prospect who can shape how a roster gets built around him.
What makes the discussion more intriguing is how quickly Acuff has pushed the conversation beyond simple rookie evaluation. He has talked about wanting to keep improving and carve out his own place in the league, and projections for his future production have only added to the buzz. For a Kings team always weighing present urgency against the need for a lasting core, Acuff is already forcing a debate about how big his role could become. [Read more 🡒]