Stats Show 2-Big Lineup Could Work For Kings, On One Condition

With Summer League in the rearview mirror, all eyes turn towards the regular season for the Sacramento Kings. There are still countless questions surrounding the Sacramento Kings, but the roster appears to be taking shape as trade rumors quiet down. It's always possible they make another splashy move or two, but it's looking more and more likely that veterans Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and Malik Monk will all be back next year in Sacramento.

It helps that Darius Acuff Jr, the hopeful next star of the franchise, doesn't play the same position as any of the veterans, but the same can't be said for the returning sophomores Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, and Dylan Cardwell.

Clifford should have no problem getting into the rotation behind, or even in front of, LaVine, but the center rotation is going to be a key storyline for Sacramento this season. In Sabonis, Raynaud, and Cardwell, they have three bigs that can man the center spot, which doesn't leave a lot of minutes to go around. And unlike LaVine, who has just one year left on his contract and doesn't need to be a huge part of the Kings' game plan this season, Sabonis will likely be heavily involved and playing 30+ minutes a night.

Two-Big Lineups

Dec 27, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings center Maxime Raynaud (42) and center Dylan Cardwell (32) celebrate after the game against the Dallas Mavericks at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

That means Doug Christie and the coaching staff are going to have to get creative with how they manage the minutes of Sabonis, Raynaud, and Cardwell if they want all three to see the court, and it means we could see more of the two-big lineups that are becoming more prominent in the NBA.

Sabonis was injured for most of last season, so we didn't get to see him on the court with Raynaud and Cardwell much, but we did get a few small sample sizes, as well as more of a sample size of both Raynaud and Cardwell sharing the court. And the advanced numbers from last year show that it's possible for it to work, but not in a way that many Kings fans are likely hoping for.

Sabonis and Raynaud: 29 minutes, +0.56 Net Rating

Sabonis and Cardwell: 74 minutes, +5.24 Net Rating

Raynaud and Cardwell: 234 minutes, -13.90 Net Rating

The one thing that immediately stands out is the -13.90 net rating with Raynaud and Cardwell on the floor together, and in a decent sample size. The NBA doesn't have advanced numbers for Summer League, but the eye test from the two games Raynaud played shows that it would probably be more of the same from the two sophomore bigs in their recent time sharing the floor.

But when you add Sabonis to the mix with either of them, the narrative flips. The Kings switch over to the plus column, and even more so with Cardwell and Sabonis. That's not necessarily a surprise, as people have been saying for years that Sabonis needs to be paired with a shot-blocking big.

The sample size with Sabonis and Raynaud is so small that it's hard to put any stock in it, but it is a good sign if the Kings are going to dabble with the idea of starting both bigs together and push Keegan Murray to the small forward spot.

At the end of the day, Raynaud and Cardwell are the future of the Kings, which puts a bit of a damper on the whole two-big lineup idea. It's possible that they both just need more time to learn how to play together, but for now, it looks like the best possible lineups include Sabonis. It's shocking, I know, that the All-NBA player makes that big of a difference.

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