Domantas Sabinis celebrates the Sacramento Kings’ 117-115 victory over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night, taking into account Lauri Markkanen’s late game-winning 3-pointer.
“Once I see him with his back to the basket, I’m not worried because he has to catch and turn,” the Kings star said. “I was like, ‘Whatever.’ But then you know… we’re the kings and I was like, ‘Okay, we could have lost.’
Based on several NBA betting sites, Domantas Sabonis and the Kings have the 18th-best odds to win the championship. Here’s a look at which sportsbooks expect Sacramento to end its 16-year playoff drought this season.
Domantas Sabinis on Lauri Markkanen in the final game: “Once I saw him with his back to the basket, I wasn’t worried because he had to catch and turn. I was like, ‘Whatever.’ we can.
— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) January 4, 2023
Domantas Sabides said of Dearon Fox’s game-winning layup: “My main job was to get Fox open. “He’s so fast and you saw him on that layup for the game-winner.” Fox led the Kings with 37 points.
Sanibis contributed 21 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists in 39 minutes. He shot 8-of-13 (61.5%) from the floor and finished a perfect 5-5 (100%) at the foul line. The two-time All-Star has recorded 27 double-doubles and three triple-doubles so far this season.
Domantas Sabinis thought the Kings were lost after watching Lauri Markkanen hit the game-winning 3-pointer.
Even though Utah fell short, Lauri Markkanen’s shot was still impressive. A half-second before the buzzer, the long jumper would have won the game for the Jazz.
Additionally, the NBA Player of the Year candidate finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and one assist in 37 minutes.
“I thought I lost it in time,” Markkanen said. “I felt great from the moment it came off my hands. It’s hard. Obviously everyone remembers the ending, but there are a lot of things we’ve done before; We’re going to fix this ball game and win it. Needless to say, Domantas Sabinis is happy the shot was delayed.
The ending of the Kings-Jazz game was wild 😳
Lauri Markkanen was 1 second away from a spectacular game shot on the speaker. pic.twitter.com/hlL93z1MRA
— Allcourtside (@allcourtside) January 4, 2023
Markkanen is the top candidate to win the MIP this season, and perhaps Domantas Saninis should be on the list as well. In 35 starts, the seventh-year player is averaging 18.7 points and a career-high 12.4 rebounds per game.
To add to those stats, the 26-year-old is averaging 6.7 assists per game while shooting a career-best 62.5% from the floor and 41.9% from beyond the arc.
In early December, Sabinis became the fourth player in Kings franchise history to record at least 20 points, five boards and five assists on 90% shooting from the field. He joins Harrison Barnes, Richaun Holmes, and Brad Miller.
