The Sacramento Kings have some decisions to make about their starting lineup for the new season. It will likely include Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and Darius Acuff Jr. The problem is that they are all weak on defense, continuing the same problem Sacramento has been dealing with for years.
As 2026-2027 approaches, the Kings are not in an enviable position. They have two veterans on their roster in Sabonis and LaVine whom they want to move on from. Being that they have two of the worst, most overpaid contracts in the league, trading them has been a huge issue for Sacramento.
Scott Perry has spent the last year bringing in new talent who will revitalize the team and build a stronger defensive identity. While Doug Christie could bench Sabonis and LaVine to make room for the young guns, paying those two nearly $100 million to not play feels like a bit of a waste.
Plus, there may be opportunities this season to better utilize Sabonis or LaVine, hopefully both of them. The Kings don't want to write them off too soon without giving them a chance, meaning they will likely be starters to open the season. But that means partnering them with Acuff.
The Kings starting line up could be defensively weak
Sacramento made the right call by drafting Acuff seventh overall. He'll be a great point guard to develop as part of the rebuild. His main issue is that he's not great on defense, something that both Perry and Christie believe will change as he grows as part of the team.
Realistically, that's going to take a while to work out. In the meantime, Acuff will quite probably end up starting alongside Sabonis and LaVine, which is a defensive nightmare for Sacramento. That means three out of five of their starters are weak defenders, and that will not win them any games.
To be fair, expectations aren't exactly high for the Kings in 2026-2027. If they lose a bunch of games to open the season while they sort this out, no one is going to be shocked. It's not going to be good for Sactown fans going to the games, but it also won't be a surprise to them. They've seen it before.
The Kings are likely going to have to try Acuff, Sabonis, and LaVine to start the season. And there's a real chance that it will work well offensively. If it's not working defensively, they'll have to sub in better defenders like Maxime Raynaud, Dylan Cardwell, Nique Clifford, Precious Achiuwa, and Alex Karaban.
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