Zags in the NBA: The case for Sacramento Kings’ center Domantas Sabonis making All-NBA

Tribune News Service

The Sacramento Kings have played 39 games, meaning they’re nearing the halfway point of their 82-game season. A good case can be made they’ve played well enough to bolster expectations beyond just reaching the play-in tournament. They entered the weekend holding the No. 5 seed in the crowded Western Conference and had 20 wins by the first week of January for the first time since 2005.

Another case can be made for center Domantas Sabonis making All-NBA.

The former Gonzaga big man is having the best season of his eight-year career. Sabonis and two-time MVP Nikola Jokic are the only players in the NBA to rank in the top 10 in total rebounds and assists. Sabonis is averaging a league-best 12.4 rebounds while shooting 62% from the floor, better than his previous best of 59% in 2018-19, a year before his two consecutive All-Star appearances with the Indiana Pacers. He also leads the NBA in double-doubles.

Sabonis is the hub of the offense. The Kings are at their best when he’s creating open shots for teammates by way of dribble hand-offs, screens or passes from the elbow. When Sacramento’s shooters are covered (the Kings are seventh in the NBA, making 13.1 3-pointers per game), he can bully his way down low and finish near the basket.

Thirty-eight games in, Sabonis not only has a case for his third All-Star appearance (the Kings should have at least one All-Star given their place in the standings), but the son of Arvydas has a chance to get All-NBA recognition. Particularly if the league continues to require one center for the three All-NBA teams.

“For me,” teammate De’Aaron Fox said after the Dec. 30 win over the Jazz, “it’s Jokic, (Joel) Embiid and him. Those are the top three centers in the league. He’s an All-Star, no question, but I think he has a chance to be an All-NBA player this year. So with him playing the way he plays, with him doing everything that he does for us, both offensively and defensively, he’s definitely in that conversation.”

Sabonis also has intangible value to the Kings. He leads the team in minutes and returned just one game after suffering an avulsion fracture to his right thumb. He elected to play through the injury rather than have surgery, which could have required missing two months. Kings coach Mike Brown has often lauded his center for his toughness and how hard he plays.

The numbers also speak to his value. Entering Monday’s game against Orlando, the Kings with Sabonis are outscoring opponents by 5.7 points per 100 possessions. Their 119.2 offensive rating would rank as the best offense in the NBA (Boston leads the league with a 117.2 rating).

Sacramento without Sabonis has been outscored by 100 points in 553 minutes, which should have the front office trying to figure out how to improve when he sits.

If there’s a clear case against Sabonis’ All-NBA campaign, it’s the Kings’ team defense.

It’s not all on him. Opponents recently have pulled Sabonis away from the basket in pick-and-rolls and drives to create more space in the lane. It’s led to the Kings ranking dead last in the NBA over the past 15 games by allowing 57.9 points in the paint. That number could be the reason voters pick someone like Miami’s Bam Adebayo for the third team over Sabonis. For the season, Sacramento ranks 23rd in defensive efficiency (while ranking fifth on offense).

Brown was asked Friday if he believes his current roster has the defensive talent to defend the rim without a traditional rim protector at center.

“One hundred percent, I believe we can do it. No doubt in my mind,” Brown said. “Because we’ve done it in spurts. At this point in the year, it’s about trying to be consistent when we do.”

Suggs returns to action

Second-year guard Jalen Suggs is back on the court with Orlando.

Suggs, sidelined since exiting the Nov. 25 home loss to the Philadelphia 76ers with right ankle soreness, scored 14 points in 24 minutes in Monday’s loss to Sabonis and the Kings, nine points in 16 minutes against the Golden State Warriors last Saturday after his return game on Thursday produced just two points in five minutes of action in a loss to Memphis.

Suggs, the No. 5 pick out of Gonzaga in the 2021 draft, has dealt with right ankle issues since last year.

He sat five games (Oct. 22-30) because of a sprained right ankle. He played in November’s first 12 games before sitting with ankle soreness.

Suggs had various right ankle ailments that sidelined him for 13 of the final 18 games last season. He had surgery to address a stress fracture early in the offseason, limiting how much he could participate in basketball activities.

“We did the surgery to take care of all the problems,” Suggs said. “It just kind of ended up coming back, so making sure the issues are put to rest and it’s not something we have to worry about anymore before it becomes a bigger issue.”