Maxime Raynaud has been named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for the month of March.
Last month, he averaged 17.9 points on 59% from the field and 8.5 rebounds in 33 minutes per games. In his 15 games, he recorded two 30-point games and six games with 20+ points.
Raynaud was drafted 42nd overall in the 2025 NBA Draft.
On the season, he is averaging 11.9 points and 7.3 rebounds. He is shooting 56% from the field.
The rookie has been fun to watch and one of the very few positive things this season. Which, by the way, ends on April 12.
Can’t help but feel a lot of fools gold because he is being forced to fed minutes.
lets be real, if they get AJ, wilson or boozer and can’t offload sabonis, he is at best 3rd in rotation and likely 4th if precious is retained.
now, can he develop and be a sabonis replacement in a year or two, thats the question
Yes, he’s being given all the minutes, but I doubt Cardwell or Eubanks would be putting up the numbers Maxime is producing. There is some truth that someone is going to score, but he’s also been sharing the floor with some high usage players in DDR and Westbrook. Nique has been given the minutes too, band he’s no where near as productive as Maxime.
What it boils down to is Maxime is not fools’ gold. There is “something” there. What the future holds is anyone’s guess.
Cardwell has put up pretty good numbers when given minutes. Per 36 for the two
DC: 9pt on .600 TS, 13.4 reb, 2.4 blk, 1.1 stl, 2.6 ast
MR: 16.4 on .600 TS, 10.1 reb, .7 blk, .7 stl, 1.7 ast
So DC statistically is better at everything except taking more shots
When you are one of the only bigs that is different than being one of 3 or 4 guard/wings like Nique. Not all minutes are equal.
I don’t think “something” is you going out on a limb, sure something is there, how vague is that. Do you think he does anything close to this when the court holds Sabonis and Boozer for example?
Small little acknowledgments is nice for a player. Good for him.
Congrats to Maxime. This is pretty cool when you think of the company he shares.
So the answer really is…
He really has been the silver lining on a very dark season.
Chrome lining, until he starts becoming a defensive presence.
Good for him. He’s getting valuable experience with all the injuries this year. I hope during the off season he can get stronger. Maybe practice and work with our developing coaches and strength people will help. He is likeable and skilled. Nice pick in the 2nd round.
Congratulations!
and he seems to be a genuinely bright and nice person. He reminds me of Pau Gasol in that regard.
But only in that regard. Basketball skill-wise – he is improving and developing. Does he have flaws and faults – yes. Are they egregrious? Is he Giorgos Papagiannis (who had very little giannis in his game)? No. But he seems to be somewhere in between Gasol and Giorgos.
Raynaud is not maxed out – he is not a finished product, despite the age and 4 year college status. He will get thicker and stronger and that will help his defense, though he is no Dylan Cardwell. You can look at him and imagine a much nicer and more polished product in 2-3 more seasons. I’m glad he’s a King and I think he is as well. So, there is that.
To me, he’s doing all this while the NBA game, at times, still looks a little too fast for him.
But you can clearly see his comfort level improving as the season has progressd.
That will likely improve even more next season, as everything continues to slow down for him and he (hopefully) makes the Year 2 leap.
If he does, the Kings could really have something here, for once.
He can be part of a good nucleus for this team going forward. The only other player on the team that I would have said that about is Keon, but of course the team handled that situation perry badly. Maybe Keegan, maybe Nique, but I’m feeling a bit higher about Max. He’s been pretty awesome even during this toxic swirl that’s been the team’s worst season in Sacramento.
He can be a pretty solid depth piece for the team if they ever manage to make it back to being competitive. Similar to how JV was for that 2nd unit.
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