The Sacramento Kings liked what they saw from rookies Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud in their Las Vegas Summer League opener.
Raynaud dominated the first quarter and Clifford took control in the fourth, leading the Kings to an 84-81 victory over the Orlando Magic on Thursday at UNLV’s Cox Pavilion.
Clifford finished with 17 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and one blocked shot for the Kings (1-0), who will face the Chicago Bulls on Saturday. Mason Jones, the MVP of the 2025 G League finals, had 17 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Raynaud put up 16 points with five rebounds, two assists and one steal. Isaac Jones added 11 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block while Devin Carter was held to eight points on 2-of-14 shooting.
Tristan da Silva had 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists for the Magic (0-1). Ethan Thompson scored 16 points.
Raynaud scored 11 points in the first four minutes, going 4 of 4 from the field, 1 of 1 from 3-point range and 2 of 2 at the free-throw line. He demonstrated a soft touch around the rim and a smooth stroke from outside,
Sacramento led 21-12 after holding Orlando to 30.8% shooting in the first quarter. The Kings forced six turnovers and came up with six steals, including two by Clifford.
Raynaud continued to shine in the second quarter. He showed impressive vision and good decision making and vision while dishing out back-to-back assists as part of a 14-0 run that put Sacramento up 31-14.
The first assist came when Raynaud pump faked from the 3-point line, drove and kicked out to Daeqwon Plowden for a corner 3. The second came on a well-timed and perfectly placed pass to a cutting Taevion Kinsey for a dunk.
The Kings went up by as many as 17 in the first half. They led 42-33 at the halftime break.
Orlando outscored Sacramento 12-3 to end the third quarter. The Kings led 59-54 going into the fourth.
The Magic got within three on a basket by Labissiere early in the fourth quarter. The Kings responded with a 10-2 run highlighted by an alley-oop dunk from Mason Jones to Clifford.
Orlando staged a 12-0 run to tie the game on a basket by Jase Richardson with 1:26 remaining. Clifford answered with a driving layup, grabbed a big defensive rebound and then made a nice cut for a dunk to help Sacramento hold on for the win.