For the past several weeks, standout Sacramento Kings' rookie Maxime Raynaud has been on an absolute hot streak on offense. That came to an end last night, not because Mad Max had an off game but because he was largely shut out of the King's offense. There may be a reason for that.
Starting with the last game in January, Raynaud has been on a tear. He's scored in double digits in 15 of the last 18 games, and picked up double-doubles in nine of them. In four of those same 18 games, he had more than 20 points. All of this is impressive for a rookie drafted deep in the second round.
Last night's loss to the Hornets was Raynaud's weakest game in a long time. He only scored four points on one of three shots from the field. If it wasn't for him sinking the only two free throws he took, Maxime would have ended up with a grand total of two points.
This is a guy who is averaging 11.5 field goal attempts per game in March, yet only took three shots against the Hornets. On top of that, he played 7.2 minutes less than his March average, which also more than a little strange. It kind of feels like Raynaud was intentionally left out of the offense.
Mad Max has been huge for the Kings
Keep in mind that Raynaud has gone through lulls on offense before. He was relatively quiet for most of January, but Domantas Sabonis was back starting and Dylan Cardwell was on the rise. Both players are injured, now, leaving Drew Eubanks as Maxime's main competitor for minutes.
In the previous two games, Raynaud had a pair of double-doubles which helped the Kings pick up rare victories against the Bulls and Pacers. He played 38 and 34 minutes respectively in those games, a far cry from the 25 minutes he played against the Hornets.
There are two potential reasons for this sudden change in minutes and usage, both of which can be true at the same time. First, the Kings want the best possible odds for the draft lottery and are tanking. Second, Raynaud fits heavily into Sacramento's future plans and they don't want him injured.
Hopefully, the Kings are not intentionally holding Raynaud back. Maxime's offense has grown quickly, and his defense is catching up with Cardwell on the shelf. Raynaud has eight blocks in the last three games. Still, he needs every minute he can get to continue his development before the offseason.