The Sacramento Kings haven’t had a strong start to the 2025-26 NBA season.<\/p>\n
On Saturday night, though, the team picked up a solid win against the Dallas Mavericks, improving to 8-23 on the year. In that game, 18-year veteran Russell Westbrook picked tallied 21 points, 9 assists, 5 rebounds and a steal, making history along the way.<\/p>\n
For Dallas, top pick Cooper Flagg notched a game-high 23 points to go along with 6 rebounds and 5 assists while shooting 7-of-13 from the field, 3-of-4 from 3-point range and 6-of-6 from the free throw line.<\/p>\n
In addition to Westbrook’s strong performance that helped the Kings to a 113-107 victory against the Mavericks, rookie big man Maxime Raynaud turned in a strong performance. <\/p>\n
Raynaud chipped in 19 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and a steal while committing 0 turnovers and shooting 9-of-15 from the field, as well as 1-of-1 from beyond the arc.<\/p>\n
After being selected with the No. 42 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Raynaud has emerged as a starter for Sacramento, earning a spot in the team’s starting lineup in each of the past nine contests. Since becoming a starter, the Stanford product has notched seven double-digit scoring performances, including Saturday night’s contest against the Mavericks.<\/p>\n
Coming into that game, Raynaud was averaging 10 points, 5.9 rebounds and an assist per game while shooting 52% from the field and 31.6% from 3-point range. In a season that likely hasn’t gone as Kings fans would have hoped, the rookie big man has been a bright spot for the team.<\/p>\n
Since becoming a starter, Raynaud has begun to emerge even more, averaging 14.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 53.8% from the field and 33.3% from 3-point range. Raynaud’s best performance came in a 1-point overtime loss to the Portland Trail Blazers that saw the 22-year-old finish with 29 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.<\/p>\n
With the Kings’ first round selection in the 2025 NBA Draft, Nique Clifford, struggling to find the same success in his rookie year, Raynaud’s play should inspire confidence that Sacramento has found at least one solid role player in the most recent class.<\/p>\n
Listed at 7-foot-1 and 250 pounds, Raynaud has ideal size for an interior player, but still boasts a modern skill set that should make him a solid center option for years to come. With solid playmaking ability and the potential to develop into a decent perimeter shooter, the Kings seem to have hit a home run in the second round.<\/p>\n
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