Sacramento Was Preferred Destination for Kings' Rookie

Maxime Raynaud reportedly preferred the Sacramento Kings as his destination in the 2025 NBA Draft.

Mar 1, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal forward Maxime Raynaud (42) signals during the second half against the Southern Methodist Mustangs at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images | Stan Szeto-Imagn Images

The Sacramento Kings followed up a strong night one trade in the NBA Draft with a simple but effective second-round of the draft with the selection of Maxime Raynaud with the 42nd pick.

It's not only an exciting pick because of Raynaud's size and skillset, as the 7-foot-1 forward averaged 20.2 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.4 blocks on 46.7% from the field and 34.7% from three last season with Stanford.

But it was also exciting because Raynaud was projected by many to be a first-round talent that slid down to the Kings mid-way through the second-round.

New Kings center Maxime Raynaud on NBA mock drafts:

NBC: 22nd
Yahoo!: 24th
ESPN: 28th
Bleacher Report: 28th
Tankathon: 28th
HoopsHype: 29th
USA Today: 29th
CBS: 30th

Sacramento gets him at 42nd. pic.twitter.com/T60bRbZbUC

— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) June 27, 2025

It appears that it may not have been a stroke of luck that led Raynaud to fall to the Kings, but intentions from his camp to get him to Sacramento, as reported by ABC10's Matt George.

Sounds like Sacramento was a preferred destination for Raynaud and his camp. May explain why he fell to them at 42. https://t.co/rTHEjjTmVp

— Matt George (@MattGeorgeSAC) June 27, 2025

Raynaud played all four of his college seasons at Stanford, which is just a two-hour drive from Sacramento. Other than the Golden State Warriors, it's the closest he could come to his home for the past four years.

Raynaud also shared the court with Andrej Stojakovic, son of Kings legend Peja Stojakovic, for the 2023-24 season. Peja was the teammate of head coach Doug Christie, so it's possible there was some influence with that connection as well.

Sacramento is also an intriguing destination for Raynaud in terms of roster fit and scheme. The team is in flux with Perry taking over and looking at all possible options, but the latest reports are that they're committed to building around Domantas Sabonis.

While Raynaud is 7-foot-1, his athleticism and shooting allows him to play alongside Sabonis, rather than compete with the All-NBA center for minutes. With Keegan Murray also hoping for a return to the small forward position, the Kings had a gap in their roster at the four spot that Raynaud can slot into.
He may not start right away, but the minutes for him are there.

It's an encouraging start to the offseason, especially after the Kings faltered to a play-in loss the last two seasons and had a whirlwind season firing Mike Brown and trading De'Aaron Fox.

The fact that a first-round level talent targeted the Kings is a great sign for Scott Perry. The Kings brought in Perry in part for his contacts throughout the league, and it appears that those are already paying dividends, from the night one trade plans where Perry had multiple deals lined up to Raynaud angling for Sacramento.

There's a lot of work left for Perry and the rest of the front office, but bringing in a 7-foot-1 forward who can shoot is a great step in the right direction.