Mar 13, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Stanford Cardinal forward Maxime Raynaud (42) after a dunk against the Louisville Cardinals during the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
The Sacramento Kings kicked off the NBA Summer League Thursday debuting draft picks Maxime Raynaud and Nique Clifford. Both had standout performances with a few hiccups, but overall performed well.
Let’s take a look at each.
**Maxime Raynaud**
Raynaud got things started with a breakout first quarter, scoring 11 early points. He displayed versatility and his offensive upside. He looked comfortable setting screens and rolling to the basket. And even though he sometimes got pushed off his spot when trying to box out or post up, he displayed a soft touch with the ability to score off either the right or left hand.
He cooled off a little as the game progressed, but still displayed an ability to handle the ball in transition, going coast to coast off a steal on one play, and knocking down some threes despite his somewhat awkward shooting form. He also displayed flashes of playmaking – putting the ball on the deck and finding cutters while beyond the arc, demonstrating court vision relatively unique for a big.
On defense, Raynaud had a few good moments stopping the ball, but struggled slightly in space and lacked the lateral movement to recover in transition at times. Former King Skal Labissière was cooking in the second half and gave Raynaud fits when put into one on one situations. Labissière obviously has more experience.
Despite this, what he showed overall in his first professional game is very promising. He finished with 16 points (6-11 from the field), 6 rebounds, 2 assists and was a +2.
**Nique Clifford**
Clifford had a rough start to the game, at least in the scoring department, but showed good effort and mechanics on defense. Once he found his rhythm in the second half after knocking down a three, he settled in and got more comfortable offensively. He demonstrated a nice floater and ability to drive to the basket and finish off spins. He also was key in a close game down the stretch, throwing down a high-flying dunk, displaying his athleticism.
His ball handling ability was on display and during Kings general manager Scott Perry’s interview with the broadcast team, he brought up how eventually Clifford could serve at times as back-up ball handler.
His second half performance balanced out his slow start and overall, he showed good two-way potential.
He finished with 17 points (5-12), 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block and was a +2. He had 10 free throw attempts, highlighting his aggressiveness (though he only made 6 of them).
The Kings will be back in action Saturday against the Chicago Bulls at 5 p.m.