Sacramento Kings center Maxime Raynaud, the 42nd overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, has been named to the 2025-26 NBA All-Rookie Second Team, the league announced Wednesday. This recognition highlights a standout debut season for the French big man, who defied expectations as the only second-round selection to make either All-Rookie squad. The news was shared by sports reporter James Ham, who tweeted, "Kings on Raynaud earning second team All-Rookie honors."
Raynaud's impressive performance provided a significant bright spot for the Kings during a challenging 2025-26 season, where the team finished with a 22-60 record. The 23-year-old averaged 12.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 26.5 minutes across 74 games, shooting 57.1% from the field. His consistent play earned him Western Conference Rookie of the Month honors for March.
A key factor in Raynaud's emergence was an injury to All-Star Domantas Sabonis, which propelled the rookie into the starting lineup. He started 56 of his final 61 games, during which he averaged 14.2 points and 8.7 rebounds in 29.8 minutes per contest. Raynaud led all NBA rookies with 18 double-doubles and also topped the rookie class in total rebounds.
Maxime Raynaud is the first Kings player to receive All-Rookie honors since Keegan Murray in the 2022-23 season. Historically, he is only the fourth player in franchise history to earn an All-Rookie team nod after being a second-round draft pick or going undrafted, underscoring the value Sacramento found in his selection. His inclusion also marks the third consecutive year a French player has made an All-Rookie team, following Victor Wembanyama in 2024 and Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr in 2025.
Raynaud garnered 110 total points in the voting, including 26 first-team votes and 58 second-team votes from a global media panel of 100 voters. He finished just behind Memphis Grizzlies guard Cedric Coward, who secured a spot on the All-Rookie First Team with 125 points. Raynaud joins Ace Bailey (Utah Jazz), Jeremiah Fears (New Orleans Pelicans), Collin Murray-Boyles (Toronto Raptors), and Derik Queen (New Orleans Pelicans) on the Second Team.
