Jerry Reynolds: Why Trading Up Could Hurt the Kings

Sacramento Kings legend Jerry Reynolds said trading up would be "too risky," even though he's a big fan of Darius Acuff Jr.

BY BRENDEN NUNES

May 18, 2026, 2:05 PM Updated: 2:08 pm

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Watch: Jerry Reynolds: The Kings Should NOT Trade Up in the NBA Draft! | 18 mins

“I’m not a fan of trading up. It’s too risky.” Owning the seventh pick in the upcoming 2026 NBA Draft, the Sacramento Kings are in an interesting position as they look to add a top-end young talent to their roster.

Former Kings general manager, head coach, and broadcaster Jerry Reynolds told The Drive Guys that he would be against trading up, despite being optimistic about some of the players that could go just picks before Sacramento comes onto the clock.

AJ Dybansta, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer, and Caleb Wilson are widely expected to go in the top four where Washington, Utah, Memphis, and Chicago are slated to pick. Things could always change, but most analysts feel strongly about those top four.

After that tier break, players like Keaton Wagler, Darius Acuff Jr., Kingston Flemings, and Mikel Brown Jr. seem to dominate the conversation. The Kings ending up with one of them would feel like an encouraging outcome, but Acuff, in particular, has a growing fanbase. Having a handful of promising options is exactly why Reynolds was opposed to trading up when asked.

“I’m not a fan of trading up,” Jerry Reynolds said. “It’s too risky… especially a team like the Kings, when you don’t have many assets, it’s pretty hard to improve your team by giving up assets, and I am really high on Acuff. I honestly think you’d have to trade up to get him.

To Reynolds’ point, while the Kings desperately need their star player of the future more than anything, that’s far from their only roster hole. All of Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Domantas Sabonis, and Malik Monk are expected to be shopped this offseason and not part of general manager Scott Perry’s long-term plans.

Rookies Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, and Dylan Cardwell had promising first seasons, but the caliber of players they’ll grow to be is still uncertain. With decent chances of being back in the lottery next season (and possibly well beyond then), there could be notable harm in trading away future capital to move up.

Now, obviously, if the price is right, that may be a different story, but trading up could still turn out to be too shortsighted.