During an interview with NBA writer Kyle Irving of The Sporting News, Sacramento Kings big man Domantas Sabonis said he expects teams to “come at” the Kings next season since they are no longer flying under the radar. The Kings won 48 games last season and made the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
“We definitely know it’s going to be the hardest year yet. Last year, there was no expectations,” Sabonis said. “We were a top-three seed. People are going to come at us. It’s not going to be easy. … We gotta be mentally strong to come out, block out all the noise and just be us. Getting better on defense, adding things on our offensive end so teams can’t scout us. It’s gonna be a lot of fun for us.”
Even though the Kings lost to the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the 2023 NBA postseason in seven games, the team has a bright future with Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox, Keegan Murray, Malik Monk, Kevin Huerter and Harrison Barnes leading the way.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Domantas Sabonis & Sacramento Kings Updates
The Kings acquired Sabonis from the Indiana Pacers in the Tyrese Haliburton trade. While there was initial criticism for the trade since Haliburton is a star point guard, the move proved to be a successful one with long-term potential for Sacramento.
Sabonis averaged 19.1 points, 12.3 rebounds and 7.3 assists in 2022-23 while shooting 61.5% from the field, 37.3% from beyond the arc and 74.2% from the free-throw line. He made the All-Star team and the All-NBA third team.
Sabonis and the Kings agreed to a five-year, $217 million renegotiate-and-extend deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The lefty was entering the final year of a four-year, $74.9 million contract that was set to pay him $19.4 million in 2023-24.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Domantas Sabonis & Sacramento Kings Updates
Sabonis has career NBA averages of 15.1 points, 9.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Pacers and Kings. He’s the son of Hall of Famer Arvydas Sabonis.
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