Welcome back. It has been a genuinely good week to be a Sacramento Kings fan, and we want you to sit with how strange that sentence feels before we continue. There are still trade rumors going nowhere, there are still expensive contracts on the books, and Jalen Duren is still in Detroit. But for three days in Sacramento, the future showed up in person and it wore a purple jersey, and we are going to talk about it.
THE DAMAGE REPORT: CALIFORNIA CLASSIC RECAP
The Kings went 3-0 at the California Classic. That's the good news. Now let's talk about it properly.
Game 1 vs. Brooklyn (July 4): Acuff scored 25 points, two rebounds, four assists in the Kings' July 4th opener against Brooklyn. The Mikel Brown Jr. matchup fans had circled on the calendar didn't materialize; Brown didn't play, but Acuff put on a show anyway. He missed eight of his first nine shots and shot 31% from the field. He still scored 25. That is either a red flag or a terrifying sign of offensive genius and we are choosing the second one.
Game 2 vs. Golden State (July 5): Acuff sat out, because the Kings weren't going to risk their $30 million rookie on back-to-back summer league games like it was 2003. In his absence, Emanuel Sharp took over. The 45th pick scored 18 points including 11 in the third quarter alone, leading a comeback from nine down in the fourth to win 91-85. Sharp also had a chasedown block in the closing minutes that made the broadcast team describe him as "Mr. AKA cell block, Mr. AKA lockdown" and "a culture-setter for Sacramento." It was summer league. We are choosing to take it seriously.
Sharp also said afterwards: "Great fanbase. I'm so happy that I'm here and get to play for them. It makes you want to play hard. I love Sac fans." For context, this man played zero games in the NBA. He has already said nicer things about Sacramento than half our veterans of the last five years.
Game 3 vs. Milwaukee (July 6): Acuff came back and scored 22 points including a go-ahead 24-footer with 3:40 left. Marquel Sutton, the undrafted LSU forward nobody knew by name a week ago, led the team with 24 points and shot 4-of-8 from three. Dylan Cardwell had 12 points, 12 rebounds, four steals, and four blocks in 25 minutes, then called this summer "a new start to Sacramento Kings basketball." The final was 95-89. The Kings shot 15-of-35 from three. The "Beam Team" is what people are calling the summer league roster now. We're not mad about it.
The one honest note: Acuff shot 31% in Game 1 and had some struggles in Game 3's fourth quarter before hitting the dagger. His defense showed flashes of competence against the Bucks, including a block on a seven-footer, which is either a sign that he's addressing the knock on him or summer league noise. The answer is probably both and neither and we'll know more in October. But the vibes are genuinely good.
For context, this man played zero games in the NBA. He has already said nicer things about Sacramento than half our veterans of the last five years.
THE LONG VIEW: RAYNAUD IS DOING STUFF IN EUROPE
While the summer league Beam Team was winning at Golden 1 Center, Maxime Raynaud was overseas being quietly excellent for France in FIBA World Cup qualifying. Raynaud is leading France in both scoring at 17.5 points per game and rebounding at 13.0 per game, playing alongside Rudy Gobert, Alex Sarr, and Bilal Coulibaly. This is notable for two reasons. One, he is the top scorer on a roster of legitimate NBA players, which is not nothing. Two, France is trying to qualify for the 2027 World Cup in Qatar, and Raynaud is playing a significant role in that campaign. He plays with Wembanyama, Gobert, Sarr, and now Raynaud. France's frontcourt is absurd. Raynaud has to earn his minutes against those guys. The fact that he is the leading scorer right now is a genuinely good sign for his second NBA season.
Kings fans who were saying Raynaud was the real steal of last year's draft are feeling vindicated this week. Kings fans who hadn't heard of Raynaud yet are googling him right now. That's the correct behavior.
THE BETRAYAL DESK (BRIEF)
DeRozan is officially gone. The Kings waived the 17-year veteran on July 6, making him an unrestricted free agent. Both the Lakers and Clippers are expected to have interest. It was the right move, the partial guarantee is small enough to manage, and Sacramento can now stretch it to give themselves more breathing room. DeMar was a good Spur, a good Raptor, a good Bull, and a decent King. His midrange is a dying art form and we wish him well. He was also never going to be part of the next chapter here and we all knew it. See you in Los Angeles, DeMar.
BEAM OR BUST
🟢 LIT THE BEAM- Marquel Sutton. Undrafted out of LSU. Shot 30% from three in college. Went 4-of-8 from downtown in Game 3. The Kings should have him in training camp. That's all.
🔴 TOTAL BUST- The Jalen Duren situation. He and Sabonis share the same agent. The Pistons don't want to trade him. No team has enough cap space to sign-and-steal him. The reason this rumor was so loud was essentially that everyone in the same management group wanted it to happen and absolutely nobody else did. This is over. Pour one out.
ON THE HORIZON: FREE AGENCY LEFTOVERS AND KUMINGA, AGAIN
The Kings are back in the Jonathan Kuminga conversation. Again. For those keeping score at home: Sacramento wanted Kuminga last summer when he was a restricted free agent with Golden State, couldn't get him, watched him get traded to Atlanta, and is now circling back now that he's a free agent. The 6-foot-7 forward averaged 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 16 games with the Hawks, but is 24 years old with legitimate upside. The problem is the same one it always is: the Kings are "hesitant" to take on the sign-and-trade salary matching required to get him, and the Lakers, Cavaliers, and Bucks are all competing for him. The Kings would likely need to move Sabonis or LaVine out in a sign-and-trade framework to make the money work.
Sam Amick of The Athletic previously reported he doesn't expect Sacramento to actually land Kuminga. The Kings have been interested in Kuminga for two straight offseasons and have not gotten him either time. At some point "interest" becomes a genre, not a plan.
Las Vegas Summer League tips off Thursday, July 9, with the Kings facing the Clippers at 8 PM PT. Acuff vs. the entire league. We'll be watching.
See you next week. Max is leading France in scoring. Acuff hit a dagger three. Sutton came from nowhere. It has been a genuinely good week. We are not used to this and we are nervous.
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