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Kings v. Wizards Summer League Game Thread

Acuff v. Dybantsa!
By | 27 Comments | Jul 12, 2026

Feb 25, 2026; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks guard Darius Acuff Jr. prior to the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Bud Walton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

The Sacramento Kings take on AJ Dybantsa and the Washington Wizards Sunday at 5 p.m.

What to watch for:

  • Following the first game in Las Vegas, Darius Acuff Jr. said he wasn’t happy with his efficiency. It will be interesting to see if he cleans that up a little.
  • It sounds like Maxime Raynaud will play in this one, so keep an eye on how he plays with Acuff.
  • Emanuel Sharp had a great game, finishing with 21 points and playing great defense. Let’s see if he can keep the momentum up.
  • The national media will be watching the matchup closely with Dybantsa playing, so there will be a spotlight here. How Acuff handles that is another thing to watch.

The game is available to watch on Prime Video.

Go Kings!

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27 Comments
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MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 5:55 pm

Are we going to have to listen to John Wall all game?

Inthestarz
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July 12, 2026 6:00 pm

Acuff been awful

chucking, not creating, bad efficiency, bad turnovers and looks like he’s out of shape already for SL

he’s showed some of the bag in some games that can hopefully be ironed out over time, and been not bad on on ball defense (off ball..) but overall a bad SL so far where your questioning mentality

Last edited 15 hours ago by Inthestarz
rockbottom
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July 12, 2026 6:01 pm

Ugly 2nd quarter . Dybantsa in a class by himself . Wiz are going to be a fun and much improved team .

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 6:26 pm
Reply to  rockbottom

He’s also getting some absolutely ridiculous calls.

Hobby916
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July 13, 2026 2:58 am

Got star calls in summer league. Crazy

ajon_es
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July 12, 2026 6:13 pm

Tough to watch our actual rotation players (Nique, Acuff, Cardwell, Max etc) get totally bodied by a G League Wizards team + Dybansta in the first half. Hoping this 2nd half is a little more competitive

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 6:27 pm

Refs are favoring AJ. He’s getting ridiculous calls.

SavageBeast
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July 12, 2026 7:57 pm

That’s honestly his thing. It’s not a one game occurrence. He’s really really good at drawing fouls.

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 8:33 pm
Reply to  SavageBeast

I know, but some of them were not fouls. That’s the problem.

JoeNoSay
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July 12, 2026 6:31 pm

Acuff’s body language doesn’t look very good today. He’s been frustrated by the pressure and hasn’t consistently sprinted back on defense.

Last edited 14 hours ago by JoeNoSay
MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 6:46 pm

This is just plain f$#@ing depressing. Three guys who technically started at different times last season for the Kings and they’re down by double digits.

lutherRackley
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July 12, 2026 6:52 pm

It could be worse. You could be here in Vegas seeing it first hand.

Every red flag ever mentioned about Acuff were on display today.

rockbottom
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July 12, 2026 6:59 pm

Acuff looked like Wagler tonite . Dybantsa as advertised . Kings better hope Monk, Domas, Keegan , Lavine, and Hunter stay healthy .

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 8:34 pm
Reply to  rockbottom

Why, so they can reach 11th place?

BuiltToSpill
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July 12, 2026 10:39 pm

In a word, yes. I didn’t work out the mathematical formulas behind the new lottery rules, but I do know that you don’t want to be one of the three worst teams in the NBA.

I feel like the best place for them to end up is with one of the play-in spots. You get the fan base excited and you still haven’t really done much damage to your lottery chances unless you make the playoffs. Maybe I read the new odds wrong, I don’t know. But again, I’m pretty sure that you don’t want to be bottom three. If everybody stays healthy, the Kings won’t be bottom three. Gods, at least I hope not…

Last edited 10 hours ago by BuiltToSpill
Inthestarz
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July 12, 2026 7:14 pm

For years I spoke about Fox’s lack of “imprint”, and I started talking about that during his second year breakout under Joerger

People thought I was just parroting nonsense without understanding the meaning

Fox’s career was derailed by a lack of motor

And I sensed that motor and knew it would derail his career when I spoke about imprint selectively being there even in his second year breakout under Joerger

Well, Acuff just exhibited potentially innate traits tonight… There was a palpable lack of interest and imprint on this game… often times its spots on the leopard…

We will see if there is any meaning behind his awful play tonight and subpar play this entire SL

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 8:37 pm
Reply to  Inthestarz

Yeah, we’ll see. As others have discussed, Acuff is a better shooter and passer than Fox. Fox’s career is also plagued (IDK if I’d say derailed) by a lack of skills and he gets hurt when he plays hard.

NorCalKingsFan
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July 12, 2026 7:25 pm

This is probably what 50-60% of this upcoming season’s games will look like.

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 8:39 pm

I really wouldn’t have cared about a close loss. However,losing by 19 with three guys that started last year is demoralizing. That’s worse than a 19 year old rookie laying an egg in a summer game.

RikSmits
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July 12, 2026 9:25 pm

I know it’s still early, but the collective effort of Kings media and (TKH) fans to polish Acuff to a shine reeks of desperation to have something, anything, to give hope and root for

The previous article mentioned accountability, as if it can be measured by a postgame interview at a SL game. You look at his defense throughout these games and he’s apparently just talk, no accountability. Or maybe accountability is something you can flip off (and on), like a switch?

Carl
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July 12, 2026 10:10 pm
Reply to  RikSmits

I’ve only watched part of one game, so I can’t say much other than Acuff’s stats are a bad look.

I will say that if you dominate summer league, it means absolutely nothing. Call it Donte’s Razor. But if you aren’t good in summer league, that can be very telling. Call that Papagiannis’s Law.

Last edited 11 hours ago by Carl
RikSmits
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July 13, 2026 1:07 am
Reply to  Carl

But if you aren’t good in summer league, that can be very telling. 

So what should we call averages of 19.5 PPG, 4.5 AST vs 3.7 TO’s, 2.0 REB, 1.0 ST, 1.0 BLK, on .324 FG%, .296 3P% and .714 FT%?

I don’t call that good, I don’t call that average, and I am being generous if I call it mediocre.

People can argue the sample size, can argue teammates, can argue whatever. So far, he looks exactly like I feared he’d look. A guy who has the body type and moves of Latrell Sprewell but plays like Monta Ellis.

https://x.com/outletpassing/status/2076477688043257925?s=20

You can’t teach indifference…

Carl
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July 13, 2026 8:34 am
Reply to  RikSmits

There’s no getting around that being a bad performance. He’s self aware enough to know it’s bad, and players like Monta Ellis either didn’t know or didn’t care, so that’s something.

Last edited 40 minutes ago by Carl
JoeNoSay
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July 13, 2026 9:09 am
Reply to  Carl

Ah, the days of Doratio Kane…

MillersCornrows
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July 12, 2026 10:30 pm
Reply to  RikSmits

I think Acuff has shown enough for us to be excited about him suiting up. I think he will be a great outside shooter, eventually, he’s crafty around the basket (he’s going to get blocked a lot early on), and he’s going to be a great floor general. Alex Karabell, on the other hand, looks like he should be selling home insurance.

RikSmits
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July 12, 2026 10:45 pm

He looks much like someone who puts up shiny, empty stats, but doesn’t do many of the little things that helps a team win. But your mileage may vary.

Hobby916
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July 13, 2026 3:11 am

Kings looked tired, or apathetic. I couldn’t tell the difference.

Acuff’s drives often were wild shots that really had no chance of going in. Defense was spot on from college scouting report/analysis. Maybe he looks better when playing with Domas, Keegan, etc.?

Mogbo was solid. Motor was high most of the game. He was active in the boards, and on defense.

Nique had some moments on offense that were nice to see. Had the AJ assignment. Held his own, but I could see the size difference was a major issue.

Why is Flagler on a 2 way?

Karaban looked slow. Recovering from an ankle injury, along with not being overly athletic to begin with, it was very noticeable.

Maybe the Sac media (and some fans) will pump the brakes on Acuff being the next great player. It seemed premature and fabricated to get some excitement for the future. But that’s media, the overreaction to a few summer league games.

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