Former Gonzaga star Domantas Sabonis helps Kings end NBA playoff drought

Sabonis leads the NBA in rebounding with 12.3 per game

When the Sacramento Kings acquired Domantas Sabonis at last season’s trade deadline, it didn’t evoke the level of excitement one would expect for a 25-year-old with two All-Star selections.

Fast forward to this season and the former Gonzaga men's basketball big man helped Sacramento clinch its first playoff berth since 2006, ending the longest postseason drought in the four major professional sports.

The third-seeded Kings face off against defending champion Golden State in the first round, which begins on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. PST. The Warriors are the No. 6 seed, but the Kings are the biggest underdogs for a top-three seed in a first-round series since 1990, according to the Action Network.

This isn’t surprising to Sabonis, who noted Golden State’s track record of playoff success.

“They’re a sixth seed but it doesn’t matter,” Sabonis said of the Warriors. “They’ve been there, they’ve proven a lot of doubters wrong many times. We can’t go in there thinking, ‘We’re a three seed and it’s gonna be easy.’”

Sabonis has been instrumental to the Kings’ winning this season, and this series should prove no different. He’s coming off the best regular season of his career, leading the NBA in rebounding (12.3 per game) and the Kings in assists (7.3). He also registered 19.1 points per game on 61.5% en route to earning his third All-Star selection.

Photo by Kevin Jairaj, USA TODAY Sports

He’s had the help of his teammates, most notably guard and fellow All-Star De’Aaron Fox, who is also having a career year. The duo led the Kings to their first winning season since the playoff drought began.

“It’s been amazing and a lot of good things have happened,” Sabonis said. “Multiple players getting recognition, been a lot of good things around the Kings and I think that’s awesome. It’s been a long time, the fans deserve it. We all felt we knew how good we can be, and the more games we played, the more the chemistry was built.”

While the Warriors are mostly known for their backcourt, which features three-time MVP Steph Curry, they are confident they can slow down Sabonis.

"Me, Draymond, and JaMychal have been doing this all year, playing against a lot of good bigs and we usually hold down the fort. Sabonis provides a problem but I think we got the answers."

- Kevon Looney on the matchup with Domantas Sabonis (via @WillardAndDibs)

— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) April 13, 2023

Sabonis, however, isn’t focused on individual matchups.

“We just gotta play our game,” Sabonis said. ”We don’t gotta pay attention to it. At the end of the day, it’s us five on the court, our bench and coaching staff, that’s all.”

It’ll be a matchup between the NBA’s two highest-scoring offenses, with the Kings averaging 120.7 points per game and the Warriors putting up 118.9.

When asked about Sacramento’s offensive firepower, Warriors forward Draymond Green mentioned Sabonis and Fox as difference-makers.

“They have an incredible playmaker trailing the play, who’s catching and going into dribble handoffs in Sabonis,” Green said. “When you gotta guy like De’Aaron Fox, who’s pushing the ball and flattens out the defense, then it allows [Sabonis] to work behind the play and get guys open.”

Sabonis rested during the Kings’ final regular-season meeting with the Warriors, but in the three matchups he played in, he averaged 21.3 points, 16.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists.

The Kings host the Warriors at Golden 1 Center on Saturday and Monday before the series moves to San Francisco for the next two contests. Both teams will alternate hosting for the remaining three games, with the Kings’ getting an extra home game as the higher seed.