Sabonis reveals Kings ‘ignored' outside expectations entering season
Sabonis reveals Kings ‘ignored' outside expectations entering season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
This past fall, for the first time in well over a decade, the Kings entered an NBA season with an unfamiliar case of high expectations.
Thanks to a playoff appearance for the first time since 2006 and the ability to remain relatively intact over the offseason, the Kings, in the eyes of many analysts, positioned themselves as a fierce competitor in the Western Conference.
Domantas Sabonis shared that the Kings, despite the hype and expectations, looked beyond what those outside of the organization were clamoring about.
"I think we mainly ignored them,” said Sabonis, who spoke to Deuce Mason and Morgan Ragan on behalf of Great Clips and its “Wrights and Wrongs” NCAA Tournament campaign. “As a team, we ignored them.”
An aspect of the Kings that Sabonis can’t ignore, however, is the team’s inconsistency throughout the 67 games this season.
Although the bar was set relatively high for Mike Brown and Co. after being named the 2022-23 NBA Team of the Year, Sacramento has struggled to find a steady rhythm all across the board, bouncing from memorable wins to memorable collapses this season.
“I think the problem is more within us that we can't be consistent most of the time,” Sabonis added. “We all know that. Everyone knows that here in Sacramento. We've seen the games we win, the games we lose.”
As the Kings enter the final sprint of their playoff push, Sabonis recognizes that one of Sacramento’s top priorities is establishing consistency.
After all, with or without expectations weighing on the Kings, the goal is always to record more wins than losses.
“We've got 17 games left and we just got to figure that out, and I feel like we're on the right track this week and we've just got to keep building," Sabonis added.
As the Kings enter the final stages of the regular season, Sabonis' candid responses might be telling of why Sacramento earned lofty expectations to begin with.
Watch the full Sabonis interview below, including why he's so excited for his Great Clips partnership, in which some lucky fans can win the Final Four experience of a lifetime.
"I'm excited for March Madness. I got my Zags [Gonzaga] going all the way," Sabonis said. "Basically, you can get on the [Great Clips] app and win free tickets for next year's women's or men's March Madness games, so that's really exciting, and you get a great haircut out of it, too."
