Domantas Sabonis
The Sacramento Kings have been in full tear-down mode of late. The younger players minutes have all started shooting up. Two of the team’s opening-day starters have now been ruled out for the season. And the news continues to trend towards younger players getting more opportunities.
Per Shams Charania, the team will be without their starting center for the remainder of the season. A torn meniscus in the left knee of Domantas Sabonis was surgically repaired, and will keep him on the sidelines until the 2026-27 campaign.
Of course, what this ultimately means is more minutes for the other centers on the roster. The hope here has to be that they can develop into more serious contributors in this time, and it’ll help for the long run.
Let’s get a little deeper than that, and evaluate the team post-Sabonis injury.
Domantas Sabonis Set to Miss Rest of Season
The bad news is that Domantas Sabonis is out for the year. The positives concerning his time on the sideline though, lie in his backups. Dylan Cardwell is the winner of all of this, as the recently converted big man is now in line to play big minutes for the remainder of the season.
In each of the past five games, the recent Auburn graduate has recorded double-digit rebounds. Showing his ability to alter games on both ends of the floor, he’s doing this after averaging just five points and five boards per game last year.
Few rookies have shown an ability like Cardwell this year to be active on the glass. Whether he’s starting or coming off the bench, his impact is going to continue to be felt. So will that of Maxime Raynaud.
The other rookie big man in Sacramento put up 21 points and 19 rebounds against the Pelicans in the second-to-last game before the All-Star break.
Raynaud has impacted the game in different areas than Cardwell, hitting 55% of his shots and posting 10 points and seven rebounds per game. This is fantastic value for the #42 pick in the past NBA Draft.
And for Cardwell, who was not even selected, the impact he has made has been truly astounding. These two guys will be the recipients of all the extra playing time with Sabonis out. And perhaps next year and beyond, one of them could secure the starting spot.
That’s what is at stake for these two as the team heads toward the finish line.
Long-Term Outlook of Center Position In Sacramento
Domantas Sabonis may have played his final game with the Kings already. This isn’t certain, as the Lithuanian big man has two years and $93 million left on his contract after this year. Sacramento was in talks with the Toronto Raptors about a trade, but nothing ever materialized.
If he is kept, he’d likely open next year as the starter. But, with the positive play shown by Maxime Raynaud and Dylan Cardwell, the position would be in good hands should a deal be made. Keegan Murray and De’Andre Hunter, the team’s primary wings, have not played a game together.
The team could use more depth in that area, and moving Sabonis could help them with that goal. Whatever the team chooses to do, they have three guys who can legitimately start at center and provide the energy needed to play good NBA basketball.
Nevertheless, get well soon, Domantas. Sacramento will miss you the rest of the way.