For better or worse, the Sacramento Kings are a team in flux, something that isn't making Domantas Sabonis particularly joyful. He is reportedly unhappy with his usage and the trajectory of the team. But trading him is not going to be easy for a Kings team moving on from the Lithuanian big man.
Sabonis has been in the league since 2016, and with the Kings since 2022. Alongside De'Aaron Fox, the duo helped Sacramento break what was the longest playoff drought in the NBA during the season now referred to as the Beam Team Era. The fortunes of the Kings have changed drastically since then.
The short but sweet Beam Team Era came to an abrupt end, and the Kings have remained basement dwellers in the Western Conference. No matter what stars Sacramento had, it was hard to maintain success with an imbalanced roster that didn't play defense. It's kind of a problem.
Sabonis is unhappy with the Kings
According to Mike Scotto of Hoops Hype, Sabonis may be running out of patience. He's appears to be unhappy with how poorly the team is playing, which is fair. He's also disappointed with his usage under head coach Doug Christie, who is largely focused on defense.
Former head coach Mike Brown ran the offense through Sabonis, setting him up for more points and assists than he's getting under Christie. The numbers don't lie, and Domantas's usage has changed since the coaching change. Sabonis might also be rewriting history a bit.
The Kings downward spiral post-Beam Team started under Brown, not Christie. As such, the offense was still being run through Sabonis when things soured. Keep in mind that the success of the Beam Team Era consisted of getting bounced in the first round of the playoffs. They weren't winning titles.
Trading Sabonis won't be easy
The reality is that Sabonis is slightly below mediocre on defense on a good day. If your starting center can't lock down the paint or protect the rim, that's a problem. As such, some of the Kings' current woes do rest on the head of Domantas Sabonis, whether he wants to admit it or not.
Sacramento has made it clear they want to trade him and Sabonis appear ready to leave. The problem is that not many teams are going to be interested in a center with almost three years and nearly $100 million left on his contract who doesn't play defense.
If the Kings can't find a trade partner and Domantas is being particularly difficult, they may have to take the hit by buying him out. Otherwise, the only choice is learning to live together until Sabonis is an unrestricted free agent in 2028. Neither option is really a good one, but that is Kings' basketball.