Darius Acuff Jr. Will Never Go Out of Style
The Razorbacks star is on a March Madness heater for the ages—not in spite of his limitations, but because of them
The video for Jay-Z’s “Show Me What You Got” features many different versions of Jay-Z. There’s Boat Jay-Z, Mansion Party Jay-Z, Pointing Jay-Z, Riding Shotgun in a Ferrari While Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chases Danica Patrick Through the Streets of Monaco Jay-Z. Rap God Lancaster Dodd. He does many, many things. There’s Sitting in a Leather Chair Puffing a Cigar Jay-Z, Silver Briefcase Jay-Z. There’s also, crucially, Champagne Jay-Z.
Jay’s at what appears to be a casino, playing poker against a very shiny woman. A waiter brings over a bottle for his approval. And the thing is, approval is denied. Jay doesn’t want that bubbly. He waves it off. He looks at his cards some more. Then they bring the silver briefcase out and open it tableside. Inside is a different bottle of champagne, one he name-checked 30 seconds prior. Armand de Brignac, “Ace of Spades.”
When Arkansas assistant basketball coach Chin Coleman got word that a major recruit had committed to come play for the Razorbacks, he opened a bottle of Ace of Spades to celebrate.
“Popped two bottles, to be honest,” Coleman said. “We had two bottles. I was celebrating like it was 1999.”
That major recruit was Darius Acuff Jr. I’d have housed two as well. Because Coleman knew then what everyone around the country has spent the past several weeks learning: Darius Acuff Jr. is the truth.
From the moment he arrived in Fayetteville last fall, Acuff has run toward pressure with arms open wide. Initially, I ended the previous sentence “with arms wide open,” then I realized that was a Creed lyric, and I changed course. Stephen Jackson once said, “I make love to pressure.” Acuff has similar feelings for pressure, but he also goes beyond that. He builds a life with it, loves it endlessly, and starts a family. He keeps showing up.
Acuff has been the Sandman, traversing the countryside, being chill, and putting teams to bed. This season, he became only the second power-conference player in the past 30 years to average 22 or more points and at least six assists per game. After being named first-team All-SEC and SEC Player of the Year, he led Arkansas to an SEC tournament championship, scoring 37, 24, and 30 points in three consecutive conference tourney games. Acuff is a lava flow. He’s the first player since Pete Maravich to lead the SEC in scoring and assists.
Offensively, he’s cooking from all three levels. He can finish at the rim, in the midrange, from distance. In transition he is skating. He goes very [zip, bang, zowee]. He combines it with a natural point guard’s feel and a caretaker’s mentality. I have it on good authority that he just wants you to be happy. This is another player who should be allowed to play with his jersey untucked.
Acuff’s full of haymakers, and he’s downright insatiable in big moments. Is the day in need of saving? Get him the ball. Is the other team on a run with all the momentum, feeling untouchable? Get him the ball. Is it the biggest moment of the game? Ball him get. Until he is no longer in a Razorback jersey, him ball get the.
Down the stretch of games, Acuff has been an open flame. He can get to the paint whenever he wants, has the touch in the midrange, and has the goods from 3. The shooting is transformative. He can hit deep 3s off the dribble or off the catch and can be just as effective whether he’s on the ball or not. There’s not an overwhelming amount of dancing with it. There’s just boom, he’s at his spot, and the other team’s taking the ball out of the net. Premium shotmaking, premium leadership, premium hogs. In transition the pigs are flying, and he’s one of the main reasons.
Acuff models his game after Allen Iverson. Sleeveless T-shirt poking out under the jersey. Iverson wore the same combo at Georgetown. Does this mean that once Acuff gets to the league, he’ll start wearing a headband, shooting sleeve, and finger sleeve? Not necessarily, but it’s something we can hope for. And on Tuesday, Acuff landed a signature shoe deal with Reebok, the same brand Iverson wore.
He is the latest in a long line of great lead guards who played for Arkansas head coach John Calipari. That list includes but is not limited to Derrick Rose, John Wall, Devin Booker, Jamal Murray, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Tyrese Maxey. Acuff’s next. Acuff’s now.
He’s also part of a much larger fraternity: small guards who can score. This is one of basketball’s most hallowed archetypes, right up there with Centers Who Think They Can Dribble and Role Players Your Dad Thinks Are Tough. The little scorer, though. There are obvious NBA examples. Iverson has been mentioned. Kyrie, Kemba, Dame, Jalen Brunson, if you want a few more. There are also collegiate examples. Khalid El-Amin, Mateen Cleaves, Salim Stoudamire, Levance Fields, Acie Law … we don’t have all day.
Small guards are fun because they are contradictions in a sport that will always be most obsessed with height. They defy evolution. They say, “Not today, future.” It’s invigorating to see something you did not think was possible. The degree of difficulty is automatically greater, and every bucket looks all the cooler for it. Oh, what’s that? The entire apparatus is designed for me to fail? I will succeed through a combination of such extreme confidence and skill that they will put my face on buildings. I could be mayor tomorrow. There’s a magical quality to small guards’ existence. It’s like they know things the rest of us could never understand.
Acuff has maintained his scorching ways in March Madness. He’s the only player to have over 60 points, over 10 assists, and under five turnovers in any two-game span in the NCAA tournament since assists became an official stat in 1984. Pretty good for a freshman. In Arkansas’s first-round game against Hawaii, he went for 24 points and seven assists. In its second-round game against High Point, Acuff poured in 36 points and six assists. And yes, the 36 was quiet, but so is a blade.
Acuff has played his way up draft boards as the other top players in the class have faltered. Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa have already been eliminated, and Cam Boozer hasn’t looked quite as dominant as advertised. But Acuff is undeniable. There are valid questions about how his size will translate to the next level, where small guards have fallen out of fashion. NBA offenses will target Acuff by bringing him into as many actions as possible, and they will press the limits of his athleticism on both ends of the floor. His obvious physical limitations make him one of the most difficult players to project in the class.
Acuff’s Razorbacks take the floor again Thursday night in a Sweet 16 matchup against top-seeded Arizona. The Wildcats will test him in the exact ways many NBA scouts want to see—picking on him defensively and orienting their entire defensive game plan to slow him down. What will it tell us about his ultimate NBA ceiling? I kind of don’t give a shit! This kid rules.
