SACRAMENTO, CA ― Darius Acuff Jr. wasn't too worried about his offense in his first ever preseason game. The Sacramento Kings rookie looked comfortable as if he's already entering his seventh NBA season.
He scored 19 points in 27 minutes in his first NBA action, albeit in just a preseason game, despite his team coming short in a 127-103 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, Oct. 6 at Golden 1 Center in downtown Sacramento.
"It felt good. I haven't played a game in a while, like a real game," Acuff told USA TODAY Sports. "It felt good, just get out there and play against somebody else. Not the outcome we wanted but it was good to play against somebody else."
Acuff, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, didn't have anything to say about
his offensive performance. He added four assists, a block and steal to his stat line. His main gripe came on the defensive end as the Lakers shot 50% from the field, including 45% from 3-point territory on 20 made 3-point field goals.
"I don't think offense is the problem," he said. "I think, with defensively, we just wasn't racking up stops as a team, as much as we needed to. I think that's kind of what separated the game. But I think offensively, we'll be fine."
And they will. Acuff did not seem phased by a Lakers defense that picked him up full court, 94 feet throughout the duration of the game whenever he logged minutes.
The Kings rookie said it's better practice for him. He welcomes the challenge. He wants the pressure.
"It was the same," Acuff said. "It was better for me, picking me up full court. I feel like I like to play against that, so I think that's an advantage for me.
"Yeah, for sure. It prepares me for sure," he added. "I say, it takes watching film, just being smart, and, you know, not trying to dribble the air out the ball back there, just trying to get one move and go. But (it) definitely prepares me for the better defenders I'm gonna face, and, you know, I just gotta take the challenge, and, you know, go out there and be me."
Kings head coach Doug Christie echoed the same sentiment as his star rookie point guard that their defense has to be better.
"You know, helping when you're not supposed to help, like all the principles of shell defense, help defense, being in a gap, being in to be out, closing out, more middle," Christie told USA TODAY. "I'm sure the film's going to show all of that. But this is what we do. We learn, we go back to the film, we show them, we drill it, we get after it."
There's no panic in Christie, Acuff or the rest of the Kings. It's the first preseason game. But there is room for improvement and lots of it.
Kings forward-guard Daeqwon Plowden said preseason games are supposed to be evaluated differently.
"It's the first one outside of us playing each other, so we're setting the standard. The way we're evaluated is going to be much higher than what it was," Plowden told USA TODAY. "I think it's a lot that we can take away from this and build on."
Christie proclaimed the team will "be better."
"You know, they got hit in the mouth," he said. "And how do we respond?"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Darius Acuff Jr. looked comfortable in his first NBA preseason game
