SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento Kings' training camp and preseason are officially behind us, and the 2026-27 regular season is set to start again.
There's excitement surrounding the team in California's capital for their upcoming season following a tumultuous 2025-26 that saw injuries and losses pile up. In turn, it resulted in one of the worst seasons in Kings history since moving to Sacramento in 1985, finishing 22-60.
But now they have a clean slate. 0-0. It's a new day. There's a newfound energy that fills the Kings' practice facility at Golden 1 Center. And a reason to be hopeful that the Kings won't be as bad as they were in the previous year.
"Everyone's excited," Domantas Sabonis told USA TODAY. "There was a lot of guys who were hurt. A lot of guys that didn't play above like 20 games. So just being out there. Everyone's happy to be out there, you know go out there and do what you love."
Sabonis appeared in just 19 games with a torn left meniscus injury, Keegan Murray only played 23 games mostly due to an ankle injury. Zach LaVine missed half the season with a right pinky injury. All three have reported to camp healthy, ready to compete. Second-year center Maxime Raynaud did have a setback with a right knee injury in a preseason game against the Golden State Warriors, but he'll be reevaluated in a week.
They recently lost newly signed former All-Star Ben Simmons after he sustained a torn Achilles injury that is believed to be a season-ending injury for Simmons.
The Kings' offseason wasn't very busy; it did have some moments. It was highlighted by the retirement of Russell Westbrook, a contract buyout for DeMar DeRozan and their 2026 draft class featuring No. 7 overall pick Darius Acuff Jr.
With their offseason acquisitions and multiple players returning from last year, there's good reason why the Kings won't be as terrible as they were in the previous year, despite the considerable loss of Ben Simmons. Here's what the Kings need in the 2026-27 season:
Everything needed for the Kings to have success
Here's what the Sacramento Kings need for a considerably successful season.
Darius Acuff Jr. is as advertised, if not better than expected
Darius Acuff Jr. was the Kings' No. 7 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. He has a superstar written all over him and Sacramento is just completely enamored with what the 19-year-old brings to the table.
As a freshman at Arkansas, he averaged 23.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, 6.4 assists on 48.4% field goal shooting. It's not just his skill or his potential. It's his work ethic that will really shine through.
Acuff is regularly one of the last ones to leave the practice facility. Once the session ends, another one begins for the rookie, where he's getting up shots, working on his spots, demonstrating his desire to make a name for himself in the league.
"That's how I got to get better," Acuff told USA TODAY. "I just got here, so I ain't really did nothing. I ain't did nothing to show nobody yet. But like I said, that's kind of been my whole motto my whole life. Just putting work in. If I see something that I didn't do well today, I'm gonna do it after to try to work on it. So that's just how I am."
Kings head coach Doug Christie will at times jaw at him to see if he could throw him off concentration. Acuff isn't phased by it. Christie knows the pedigree Acuff comes with. They're cut from the same cloth. He loves it.
"He is about as hard a worker as you see," Christie said to USA TODAY Sports. "For us to push him, we're going to push him in a lot of different ways. Obviously, defensively, offensively, he is special, man. I mean, he can make the shots, he can make the passes, he sees it all. You can't really speed him up like he plays on the ball, off the ball. So there's a lot of of things to be happy about with Darius."
Zach LaVine, Domantas Sabonis need to have All-Star caliber seasons
The Kings will be a solid team that surprises opponents if their best players produce All-Star seasons. Even if they get snubbed, playing at an All-Star level is still significant. Both players missed large portions of the 2025-26 season due to injuries.
Both have said their health is intact and they are ready for the campaign. LaVine has been selected to an All-Star team twice, in 2021 and 2022. He put up 19.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 39 games last season. He shot 47.9% from the field in 2025-26.
Sabonis is a three-time All-Star, appearing in 2020, 2021, and 2023. He only played in 19 games with Sacramento last season. He's played for the Kings for five seasons where he's averaged 19 points, 13.1 rebounds on 59% field goal shooting and 37% 3-point shooting.
Kings are healthy, stay healthy
The Kings were unfortunate in the health department last season. Their projected starting lineup did not log a single minute together. Guys were filling in or playing out of position throughout the 2025-26 campaign.
Sacramento cannot afford to miss guys, especially key players. Last year it happened and it got ugly at times. They enter this season relatively healthy. Their success will depend on how available their players are.
Team depth and bench production
A lot has been made of the Kings starting lineup but they have talent coming off the bench as well, but they will need consistent contribution from that group of guys, led by Malik Monk.
Last season, the Kings were ranked 13th in the NBA for total bench points and bench points per game during the 2025–26 regular season. But they need to be consistent on defense as well.
They will be heavily dependent on Monk, Raynaud, Emmanuel Sharp, Precious Achiuwa, De'Andre Hunter, Nique Clifford, Dylan Cardwell and Daeqwon Plowden.
And although a starter, not a reserve, Keegan Murray will have a major presence in this team's success. He's not being asked to do too much, nor too little. Just answer the phone when your number is called, because it will be often.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 4 reasons the Sacramento Kings are better than you think despite Simmons loss