Sacramento Kings Moves Appear to Open Up Spot for Maxime Raynaud

Maxime Raynaud is officially bound for the NBA. In the NBA Draft last week, Raynaud fell to the second round, but was nonetheless selected by the Sacramento Kings with the 42nd overall pick, cementing his status as a professional basketball player. But when he was taken, questions started to arise as to what type of role Raynaud would have as a rookie.

Things may have gotten a little clearer on Tuesday. Near the start of free agency, the Kings struck a deal with the Denver Nuggets that sent center Jonas Valanciunas to Denver and brought 6-foot-10 power forward/center Dario Saric to Sacramento. With Valanciunas now gone, it is quite possible that Raynaud will climb up the depth chart just a touch.

It's also worth noting that Sacramento is also the rumored destination of center Drew Eubanks, who was waived by the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday. ESPN's Shams Charania is reporting that Eubanks will sign a one-year deal with the Kings once he clears waivers. Neither new addition has seen major minutes in their time in the NBA, with Saric averaging 13.1 per game last season, and Eubanks netting 12.2.

Raynaud proved in college that he is a very dynamic player, averaging over 20 points per game 10 rebounds per game and was a big reason why Stanford defied expectations and won over 20 games in their first season in the ACC.

Even though many had him as a first-round talent, it is likely that his age and some concerns over his foot speed are the reasons why he slipped. Trading Valanciunas was likely a sign that while Raynaud was taken late, the team views him as the type of guy who can develop quickly and become an impact player fairly quickly.

Domantas Sabonis is locked in as the team's starting center, but Raynaud could prove to be a very good backup. One issue that plagued the Kings in 2024-25 was their lack of depth, especially at forward and center, with the team unable to figure out a consistent bench rotation. However, given what the Kings have in Raynaud and the ceiling he has, the Kings will want to see if he in fact is as good as advertised.

At 22 years old, Raynaud is on the older side for an NBA rookie-- but sometimes that means a player is more NBA ready. Missing the playoffs for the second straight season with a play-in loss, the Kings are looking to build up their younger players and create their next core group.

Spending four seasons at Stanford, Raynaud's first two seasons on The Farm involved him getting acclimated to the American style of play, averaging 4.5 points as freshman off the bench before averaging 8.8 points as a sophomore. But come his junior year, Raynaud took a massive leap forward, averaging 15.5 points in his first season as a full-time starter while earning both Pac-12 Most Improved Player and Second-Team All-Pac-12 honors after the season.

In his final season in college, Raynaud not only went toe-to-toe statistically with Duke superstar freshman and No. 1 overall pick, Cooper Flagg, but he also evolved into one of college basketball's best players and was consistently in the mix for big time awards.

Had Flagg not been as good as he was, he could have very well won the Player of the Year award. Raynaud's strong season earned him First-Team All-ACC honors and an invite to the NBA combine-- where his 20 point and nine rebound performance during 5-on-5 helped raise his profile ahead of the Draft.