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The Sacramento Kings kicked off the 2025-26 season with their annual Media Day on Monday. The day went off without a hitch as the Kings’ media team delivered one player after another through the maze of obligations ranging from photo shoots to intro videos for the scoreboard to interviews with local media.

Media Day is a mandatory event, but players seemed genuinely enthusiastic as they trudged through a long afternoon of planned engagements.

The vibe of the day was similar to the feel of the first day of school. Everything is positive. Everyone worked hard on their game during the offseason. Everyone is healthy and ready to compete for a playoff spot.

Here are some of the highlights from the day.

Doug Christie was a bundle of energy. He is also laser focused on one side of the ball, “we want to defend, we want to defend, we want to defend.“ Christie will have his hands full trying to bend this team to his will, but he has the backing of the front office and a very strong coaching staff heading into the season.

Keegan Murray had a busy summer. He got married early in September, although he struggled to come up with an actual wedding date. He’s still waiting for a rookie scale extension, but his agent is handling that. He might be the most important player on the roster for Sacramento this season, especially if he can get back to the 40 percent shooting from 3-point range that he accomplished as a rookie.

Despite a summer of rumors, Malik Monk is back in Sacramento. He said he purchased a home in Sacramento this summer and of course, played a lot of golf. His energy is infectious.

DeMar DeRozan stole center stage. His honest assessment of last season’s “shit show“ was tough. He’s entering year 17 in the NBA and while he wouldn’t divulge his secrets, DeRozan took the summer to clear his head and prepare for a season of redemption.

Zach LaVine had never been traded midseason until last year and balancing work and life wasn’t easy. He took time away this summer with family, but looks primed to have a big season as the Kings’ No. 1 scoring option.

Domantas Sabonis asked for a point guard and the Kings’ brass delivered Schröder. The Kings’ star big man is entering his tenth season in the league and his long standing relationship with Christie should help bridge the gap between the coaching staff and players.

Keon Ellis still hasn’t watched footage of Doug Christie playing defense, but he’s back and ready to battle for rotational minutes. Like Murray, Ellis is still waiting for his extension, but hopefully that won’t be a distraction for the third-year guard.

Dennis Schröder is fresh off an incredible showing in EuroBasket that included a gold medal and an MVP award. He’s also on his sixth team in a little over two years. If anyone is adept at learning new teammates and a new system, it is Schröder, who made a strong impression with the media in his first training camp in Sacramento.

Like Schröder, Drew Eubanks has played for plenty of NBA teams. He’s a veteran player who understands his role and his place in the hierarchy of a team. That being said, he comes across as very likable and should fit in great in an evolving locker room.

Following Media Day on Monday, the Kings reconvened on Tuesday for the start of Christie’s first official training camp as head coach. As media arrived in the practice facility, the team was in the middle of wind sprints, which might be a theme of this year’s camp.

Christie and former teammate turned assistant coach, Bobby Jackson, were leading the drills. Sitting along the baseline was another former teammate in Mike Bibby, the current head basketball coach at Sacramento State.

Following practice, Christie spoke on having the support of his former backcourt mates and about the unfinished business they all feel they have in Sacramento after coming up short of a championship in the early 2000s.

There was a lot of energy in the building and Christie was clear that this is only the beginning. He wants his team to be one of the best conditioned teams in the NBA so they can be a transition team when the regular season kicks off.

The Kings signed Schröder during the offseason with the idea of pushing the tempo. They want the veteran point guard to initiate the offense on one end, but also pick up the defensive intensity in the backcourt.

After an incredible offseason playing overseas, there has been a buzz surrounding Schröder, both on media day and day one of camp. He is a player who has bounced around the league, but that can be a positive when it comes to learning new offensive and defensive sets. There are very few things in the NBA that Schröder hasn’t seen as a player.

Schröder is expected to pair with Zach LaVine as a backcourt combination this season. LaVine came over in a midseason trade with the Chicago Bulls and is getting his first training camp in a Kings uniform.

With Schröder and LaVine both under contract for the next two seasons, the Kings are expecting this duo to provide stability and direction. Christie will rely heavily on these two as he ventures into his first full season as the head coach in Sacramento.