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What to watch for in Las Vegas Summer League: Sacramento Kings

The NBA’s Las Vegas Summer League has arrived, and the Sacramento Kings have no shortage of players to keep an eye on over the next ten days.

All 30 teams in the league will descend upon the Thomas & Mack Center, as well as Cox Pavilion, to deliver a showcase of young talent that includes some of the top names from this year’s 2025 NBA Draft.

For Sacramento, several players will be looking to make a strong first impression — and for some, improve their current stock as they enter year two of their professional careers.

Here are a few what-to-watch-for’s as the Kings arrive in Las Vegas for a summer showcase.

A lot of Devin Carter

Devin Carter was the 13th pick in last year’s NBA Draft, and while many draft experts and scouts loved the pick for Sacramento, the Providence guard never got to spread his wings during his rookie season.

Hampered by a shoulder injury that sidelined him through the first four months of the regular season, Carter’s introduction to the NBA was somewhat unceremonious, as he played sporadically over the final half of the 2024-25 campaign.

While Carter struggled to produce at a high level with the Kings, he dominated in each of his five G League appearances last season, averaging 26.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game with Stockton, Sacramento’s minor league affiliate.

Now, Carter will have another opportunity to turn heads, this time in Las Vegas as the Kings’ Summer League starting point guard.

“Just learning, watching film,” Carter said about his summer role following Tuesday’s practice at Golden 1 Center. “I’ve never played point guard in my life.”

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While Carter was listed as a point guard coming out of college, it’s clear he does his best work playing off-ball.

The three-point shot needs work at the NBA level (29% on 61 attempts last season), as does Carter’s playmaking ability–but if his G-League numbers tell us anything, it’s that the potential is there for the 23-year-old.

Carter’s name has been mentioned in trade rumors, but if he is to remain with Sacramento into next season, the Kings need to cash in on their 13th pick from a year ago. Carter has proven he can defend and rebound at a high level. Now, we will see if he can display growth on the offensive end.

If Carter can prove to be a serviceable backup option, it will lead to more opportunities during his sophomore season, especially as new general manager Scott Perry navigates a current log-jam at the shooting guard position.

The backup point guard role is there for the taking, and a strong summer from Carter would only bolster his chances of being in the rotation mix come this fall.

Raynaud’s Presence Around The Rim

42nd overall pick Maxime Raynaud was widely viewed as a player with first-round potential, and Sacramento hopes to have found a gem in the second round of last month’s NBA Draft.

Raynuad, a 7’1 big out of Stanford, posted one of the best seasons in ACC history this year, averaging 20.2 points, 10.6 rebounds (led conference), and 1.4 blocks per game. The French product became just the third major conference player in the past 25 years to average 20 points and 10 rebounds per game while making 50 or more three-pointers, joining Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony.

While the Kings will surely welcome Raynaud’s ability to space the floor, what they really could benefit from is a heightened sense of rim protection.

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Sacramento has finished 25th or worse in team blocks for three straight seasons, with forward Keegan Murray leading the way with 69 blocks in 2024-25.

All-NBA center Domantas Sabonis has proven to be effective in several areas on the floor, most notably on the glass and in creating for his teammates, but rim protection continues to be a key weakness for the Kings’ main big.

Raynaud finished fifth in the ACC in blocks per game, while coming in at third in the conference with 50 blocks over 35 games played.

Stanford head coach Kyle Smith joked with Sactown Sports’ Jason Ross that he didn’t allow Raynaud to block shots last season due to wanting to keep him out of foul trouble, but Sacramento could benefit from an uptick in aggression in that department.

Watching to see how Raynaud handles the physicality and around-the-rim presence of other NBA prospects will be interesting to watch, as well as his rim-protecting ability. Being able to defend at a high level without fouling has been a persistent issue for the Kings over the years, particularly in limiting damage in the paint.

Raynaud has plenty of offensive potential, but it’s the defensive end that could be the driving force in determining whether he sees the floor often in the 2025-26 season.

Can Jones Dominate?

After having his 2025-26 team option picked up early in the offseason, Isaac Jones enters Summer League looking to follow in the footsteps of teammate Keon Ellis.

Like Ellis, Jones started his NBA career on a two-way contract before being rewarded for his efforts with a standard NBA deal during the final month of the regular season.

The 6’9 forward looked strong in stretches last year, including an impressive five-game run in November as Sacramento’s backup power forward that saw Jones average 9.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game while shooting 65 percent from the field.

While Jones saw limited run at the NBA level during his rookie season, he was dominant during his time with the Kings’ G League affiliate.

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Over 12 appearances with the Stockton Kings, Jones averaged 21.1 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game on 57 percent shooting from the field.

Jones, who was named to the All-NBA G League Third Team, scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in the decisive Game 3 of the G League Finals as Stockton secured the title over the Osceola Magic.

Last summer, Jones’ impressive showing in Las Vegas (11.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.4 blocks per game) put Sacramento on notice about the undrafted forward out of Washington State.

How will Jones perform this time around? With NBA and NBA G League experience under his belt, it will be interesting to see what kind of aggression Jones plays with in Las Vegas.

For Ellis, who went from undrafted to a two-way contract to a standard NBA deal to becoming a valued rotation member, the key factor in his ascent was showcasing the ability to be a consistent three-point shooter, as well as a lockdown on-ball defender.

Jones has yet to show that he can be a mid-deep range threat, which could prove vital in his quest to log more minutes with Sacramento. If Jones continues to clean up around the basket, play physical defense, and showcase an improved ability to score outside of the paint, it will be a successful trip to Las Vegas for the soon-to-be 25-year-old.

Sacramento Kings Las Vegas Summer League Schedule

Game DATE TIME (PT) OPPONENT LOCATION BROADCAST

1 Thu. July 10 4:30 p.m. Orlando Cox Pavilion NBA TV

2 Sat. July 12 5:00 p.m. @ Chicago Cox Pavilion NBA TV

3 Mon. July 14 7:00 p.m. Phoenix Cox Pavilion ESPN U/NBCS-CA

4 Wed. July 16 12:30 p.m. @ Cleveland Thomas & Mack Center ESPN 2/NBCS-CA

5 TBD

More Sacramento Kings & NBA Summer League coverage from Sactown Sports

“We’re going to make them feel us, we’re going to communicate, and then we’re going to compete.”

Sacramento Kings 2025 Summer League head coach Dipesh Mistry emphasized those keys as what he’s “really harping on” in their limited practice days before Thursday’s first game in Las Vegas. Monday was their first practice as a group.

Rookie draft picks Nique Clifford and Maximue Raynaud will have the most eyes on them, but Sacramento’s roster has a notable amount of “experienced” players.

Their full roster can be seen here.

With minimal time to gain cohesion as a group, Mistry expects his group to play with a defensive intensity, ideally translating to offensive efficiency in the process.

After reviewing the film on their first practice, Mistry felt they didn’t have enough defensive pressure for 94 feet.

“It’s not to try to get a steal, it’s just to shave off some shot clock,” he said.