De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis named All-NBA; Kings one of two teams with two selections

The Kings haven’t had two All-NBA players in the same season since the franchise moved to Sacramento in 1985, not even when they were on the verge of greatness around the turn of the century.

They do now.

Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox and center Domantas Sabonis were named All-NBA Third Team selections Wednesday, capping a special season for Sacramento. A panel of 100 journalists and broadcasters bestowed All-NBA honors on Fox and Sabonis for the first time in their respective careers after they led the Kings to their first playoff appearance since 2006.

The First Team featured Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks.

The Second Team included Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets, Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors, Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat and Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics.

The Third Team was made up for Sabonis, Fox, Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers, Julius Randle of the New York Knicks and LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Antetokounmpo was the only unanimous First Team selection. The Kings and Celtics were the only teams with two All-NBA selections.

Fox and Sabonis were the top vote getters among Third Team selections. Sabonis received 26 Second Team votes and 69 Third Team votes for a total of 147 points. Fox received one First Team vote, 33 Second Team votes and 40 Third Team votes for a total of 144 points.

Fox and Sabonis are the first Kings players named to the All-NBA team since DeMarcus Cousins in 2016. This is the 10^th time in franchise history and the first time in the Sacramento era the Kings have had two All-NBA selections in one season. The last time was 1968, when Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas received First Team honors for the Cincinnati Royals.

Fox averaged 25 points, 4.2 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.1 steals to earn his first All-Star selection this season. Sabonis averaged 19.1 points, 12.3 rebounds and 7.3 assists, leading the league in rebounding and double-doubles.

The Kings won 48 games to win the Pacific Division and secure the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, ending the longest playoff drought in NBA history after 16 consecutive losing seasons. They were eliminated in the first round following a hard-fought seven-game series against the Golden State Warriors.

This concludes a banner year for the Kings, who were handsomely rewarded as postseason awards were handed out over the past few weeks.

General manager Monte McNair was named NBA Basketball Executive of the Year. Mike Brown was the first unanimous selection as Coach of the Year. Fox was named Clutch Player of the Year and Keegan Murray was named to the All-Rookie First Team.