Darius Acuff Jr. just got drafted seventh overall by the Sacramento Kings, and within 48 hours his old coach already had jokes. John Calipari showed up at the NBA Draft on Tuesday night to watch his Arkansas point guard go in the lottery, but he couldn’t let the moment pass without getting a little something off his chest.
On Thursday’s episode of Run It Back, Calipari brought up Acuff’s numbers from the NBA Draft Combine and turned them into a punchline aimed right at his former player.
“In the combine, he was the fastest player,” Calipari said. “Why the s**t didn’t you run like that for me? You didn’t run that fast!”
It’s classic Cal. The man loves his guys, but he also loves giving them grief. And in this case, the jab landed because it actually points to a real question that followed Acuff through the pre-draft process.
Effort questions followed Acuff into the lottery
Nobody doubts Acuff’s offensive talent. He was one of the most explosive scorers in college basketball last season and carried a massive scoring load for the Razorbacks. But scouts spent months trying to figure out why that same energy didn’t always show up on defense.
Draft analysts flagged his effort and focus on that end of the floor as legitimate concerns. Some had him pegged as one of the worst defenders in this entire draft class. That’s probably why he slipped a little on draft night despite being arguably the best offensive guard in the field.
Calipari’s joke hits that tension directly. Acuff can fly when he wants to. The question is whether he’ll want to consistently at the next level.
The counterargument is pretty simple though. Acuff was asked to do everything for Arkansas on offense. When you’re that team’s entire engine on one end, it’s hard to blame a guy for conserving some energy on the other. But the NBA doesn’t always give that pass to rookies. Teams expect two-way play, especially from a top-10 pick.
Acuff fell behind two other guards on draft night
Another layer here: Acuff ended up going after both Keaton Wagler and Mikel Brown Jr. That wasn’t totally unexpected based on how the board shook out, but there was a real argument that Acuff was the better prospect than either of them. He’s absolutely the kind of player who will use that as fuel.
Sacramento fans have reason to be excited. Acuff can create his own shot, get to the rim, and stretch the floor in ways that should fit nicely next to De’Aaron Fox. The Kings need another dynamic playmaker, and Acuff gives them that right away.
But Calipari’s joke is going to follow him. Every time he blows by a defender or sprints the floor in transition, somebody is going to wonder why he didn’t do it more at Arkansas. That’s the beauty of having a coach who talks to the media. The receipts live forever.
Acuff now heads to Summer League with something to prove. He’ll hear the jokes. He’ll hear the criticism about his defense. And if he’s smart, he’ll let all of it push him.
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