The Memphis Grizzlies only had eight players available last night—three of them on two-way contracts and one who was called up from the G League—but still made life difficult for the Kings.
Giving up 33 points in the first quarter to a team missing almost all its regular rotational players was not a good start to the game, and it didn’t get much better. The Kings raked up 19 mostly unforced turnovers and 17 fouls throughout the game and just barely escaped with the 103-94 win.
It was not a pretty game for Sacramento. They should easily have been the better team. There were some bright spots, however, and one of them was the Kings’ big man.
Domantas Sabonis finished the game with a historic stat line
Sabonis was easily the best Kings player last night. He put up 20 points on 10-11 shooting from the field, 26 rebounds, and 5 assists. With that, he extended his league-leading streak of now 28 consecutive double-doubles and needs just one more to tie Oscar Robertson’s franchise record.
He also joined Chris Webber as the only player in the Sacramento era to grab more than 25 rebounds in a game and tied his franchise record. That is not all, however.
History in the making 😲@Dsabonis11 becomes the 11th player in franchise history and second in the Sacramento era, joining Chris Webber, to grab 25+ boards in a single game 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/xsH54Ozcnd
— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) January 30, 2024
Sabonis is now just the second player since 1956-57, when the league first started recording assists, to have a game with 20 points, 25 rebounds, and 5 assists while shooting 90 percent from the field. The only other player to do it so far is Wilt Chamberlain.
With last night’s game, Sabonis etched his name into the NBA history books next to an all-time great.
After the game, Sabonis credited his teammates for helping him get this historic stat line. “My teammates helped, we missed a lot of shots,” he told NBC Sports California, making light of a rough offensive game for the Kings.
Sabonis is having another All-Star and All-NBA season
With 19.9 points, 13 rebounds, and 7.9 assists, Sabonis is averaging a double-double for the season. He has broken franchise records and led the King to wins. He leads the league in rebounds for the second season in a row.
If he keeps going like this, it will be his best season yet and one of the most productive ones across the league. National media and fans don’t always give him the love and respect he deserves, but Sabonis is having a great season and should make both the All-Star team and an All-NBA squad.