Kembali
The Sacramento Kings found their new franchise point guard, but in his first 11 games, even his historic start has not led the team to wins. Darius Acuff Jr. is averaging 26.2 points and 7.3 assists per game to start his NBA career, but the Kings have just a 1-10 record.
On Tuesday night, the Kings had a chance to pick up their second win of the season and light the beam for the first time since April, but ultimately fell to the Orlando Magic, 107-100. The Kings have some obvious issues to fix, and hopefully they can clean things up, as their star rookie is already getting frustrated.
After Tuesday's loss to the Magic, Acuff Jr. made it clear that he is already tired of losing when asked how much these losses are taking a toll.
"A lot. I'm not a loser, so it's not fun," Acuff Jr. said.
Frustrations are riding high in Sacramento. Darius Acuff Jr. post game was very different. Some pretty raw vibes after a 1-10 start: pic.twitter.com/gxyQcM1LWx
— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) November 11, 2026
Acuff Jr. went into it more when asked what the most frustrating part for him has been.
"When the clock says zero and we lost," he answered. "I don't understand. I don't know what to do, man. I feel like we're trying, everybody as a whole, we're just not coming out with the win. I don't know, man. 1-10 just don't sound right."
As Acuff Jr. said, the Kings' 1-10 record doesn't sound right. The Kings already have more losses than Acuff Jr.'s Arkansas Razorbacks had all of last year, so obviously, this is a bit of a culture shock for him. To make matters worse for him, he is doing all he can for this Kings team.
The Kings obviously need to figure some stuff out, but what's actually going wrong for them? Acuff Jr. spoke more about what's actually going wrong for the Kings.
"We're trying. I think we've just got to come together at the end of the fourth quarter. Just get better as a team and close the games. It'll take time, but we'll figure it out at some point," Acuff Jr. said.
Darius Acuff over his last 7 games:
— Real App (@realapp) November 11, 2026
28.9 PPG
4.4 RPG
8.7 APG
46/39/88%
This is not normal for a 19-year-old. pic.twitter.com/c16tD316qI
Acuff Jr. has been on a tear, doing what he can to keep the Kings afloat, but nothing is working for this team. Against the Magic, Acuff Jr. and Zach LaVine combined for 60 points with ten three-pointers, and it still wasn't enough.
The Kings committed 20 turnovers, compared to Orlando's 12, while losing the rebound battle by 14. Even on an efficient shooting night, knocking down 47% of their three-point attempts, the Kings made too many mistakes.
We can understand Acuff Jr.'s early frustration, but this franchise needs to figure out how to turn things around before things turn sour with its only bright spot. Building a successful team around Acuff Jr. is the Kings' new priority, and they are obviously not anywhere close to getting there.
The Kings finish their long seven-game home stand with matchups against the Portland Trail Blazers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Phoenix Suns, and if they do not figure out a way to win one of these three games, we could be looking at a 1-19 record before their next favorable matchup.