Darius Acuff Jr. speaks up on big change after losing Ben Simmons to injury appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Sacramento Kings were dealt a major blow over the weekend when it was revealed that Ben Simmons suffered a season-ending Achilles injury. Simmons was attempting an NBA comeback this season after not playing last year, and the Kings had big plans for him, wanting to pair the former No. 1 pick alongside rookie point guard Darius Acuff Jr.
Losing Ben Simmons to injury hurts the Kings in that his versatile skill set is among the most unique in the NBA. For Darius Acuff and the rest of the team, they’re going to have to find a way to replicate what he brought to the court, as per James Ham of ESPN 1320 Sacramento.
“It changes a lot. He was a big part of our team. He can do everything one through five, so it changes a lot,” Acuff said. “I think we’ll figure it out for sure. It hurst to lose him, but I think we’ll figure it out and try to get better at certain things that we know he did.”
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Simmons had been having a solid preseason and training camp and seemed well on his way to re-establishing himself in the league. Now, the Kings are going to lean a little more on Acuff as the primary ball-handler in Simmons’ absence.
With the regular season about to begin, Acuff is coming off a solid preseason debut. The former Arkansas star appeared in four games at a little over 24 minutes per game. He averaged 17.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists with splits of 42.4 percent shooting from the field, 42.1 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 84.6 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
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