Rookie Maxime Raynaud Offers Kings Versatility

The Kings were active on draft night 2025, trading future draft capital to grab the No. 24 pick and select wing Nique Clifford. They did so without giving up their second-round pick, at the time hinting to the fact they had a potential target.

That pick would eventually turn into Stanford big Maxime Raynaud, pound-for-pound one of the more intriguing players in the entire class.

Eventually taken at No. 42, the 7-foot-1 Raynaud was a collegiate star, scoring over 20 points and adding 10.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 blocks for the Cardinal in his senior season. But it wasn’t just how prolific Raynaud’s scoring was, it was how he did it.

Raynaud is the true definition of a stretch big. He shot 16 times per game for Stanford, with more than a third of his total shots coming from beyond the arc. He hit on a great 35% of those, showcasing plenty of touch outside of simple catch-and-shoot attempts. He also had a knack for parlaying the threat of his jumper into looks inside, which eventually led to his finishing within the top-15 of ACC scoring leaders.

Raynaud quickly turned his collegiate success to professional, helping the Kings’ Summer League squad make the final in Las Vegas. Across five games he was able to score 12.8 points on 49% shooting, adding 6.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 blocks per game. He shot just 25% from beyond the arc, but the small sample size mixed with his previous numbers and great form offer little question about his shooting.