The usage rate leaders list through the first two and a half weeks of the NBA season features some familiar and expected names: Luka Dončić, Anthony Edwards (four games), Victor Wembanyama, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Stephen Curry round out the top five, with Brandon Miller and Jayson Tatum not far behind. However, the name below them might come as a surprise. Kings rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr., who has a 31.6% usage rate through the first eight games, is No. 8 on the list.
The only other rookie in the top 40 is Bulls forward Caleb Wilson (No. 38). Here are the last five players to win NBA Rookie of the Year, along with their respective usage rates. Even with a sample size that represents barely 10% of the season, what Acuff is doing will likely be sustainable, as he's being asked to do more than any rookie in his class on the offensive end of the floor.
It's for that reason that his play has drawn eyeballs and why everybody seems to have an opinion — whether it's positive, negative, or maybe even somewhere in between — on him. Is the 19-year-old guard a perfect rookie? But he is just eight games into his NBA career and is posting numbers that get him in the same conversation as players like Dončić, LeBron James and Oscar Robertson.
After finishing with 22 points and 12 assists in a loss to the Lakers on Wednesday, Acuff became the fastest NBA player in NBA history to reach at least 200 points and 50 assists. It's hard to imagine he won't be writing his name into the record books across his rookie season. As someone who watched Acuff throughout his entire college career at Arkansas, I'm not surprised to see the numbers he is putting up in the NBA.
Acuff was just the second SEC player (and the first since Pete Maravich) to average at least 22 points and six assists per game in a season. John Calipari has coached plenty of outstanding one-and-done guards during his time at Memphis, Kentucky and Arkansas, including Gilgeous-Alexander, Devin Booker, Derrick Rose, De'Aaron Fox, Jamal Murray, John Wall, and Tyrese Maxey. Simply put: if you're an elite high school guard prospect, you want to play for Coach Cal.
Acuff's season at Arkansas had him in the conversation for the best freshman guard Calipari has coached. Does that mean he's going to become a two-time NBA MVP like SGA or a multi-time NBA All-Star like the other names on that list? The jury is still out, but his college production — on both ends of the floor — is similar to what we are seeing play out in the NBA.
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