Kings Star Domantas Sabonis Opens Up About Impact of Keegan Murray's Injury

There are already low expectations for the Sacramento Kings heading into the 2025-26 NBA season, and their most recent injury announcement certainly does not help.

The Kings announced that standout forward Keegan Murray underwent surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his left thumb that he suffered in their previous preseason outing, and he will be re-evaluated in 4-6 weeks, sidelining him for the first several games of the regular season.

Murray, 25, is one of Sacramento's most important players and their best wing defender by a good margin. With Murray sidelined, many fans are very concerned about how the start of Sacramento's season will go, especially with some very tough matchups while he is sidelined.

Domantas Sabonis speaks on the injury

Oct 8, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward/center Domantas Sabonis (11) talks with the team during the third quarter against the Toronto Raptors at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

After Monday's practice, Kings star center Domantas Sabonis was asked about how he is feeling about Murray's unfortunate injury news.

"It definitely sucks," Sabonis said. "He's a big part of our team offensively and on the defensive end. These next couple of days of training camp, we're just gonna try to see what's the best way to go about it for the starting lineup... I have no idea [what to anticipate]. We're trying out a lot of things, and we're gonna see what works best over the next couple of days."

Domantas Sabonis reacts to the injury of Keegan Murray, his Kings trying to figure out how to replace him in the rotation, what he's made from the first two preseason contests & seeing the Clippers on Wednesday. pic.twitter.com/pOGQOwjxnU
— Sean Cunningham (@SeanCunningham) October 13, 2025

The Kings certainly have some work to do to make up for Murray's absence, as it will be impossible to replicate his impact with any of the players who are on the current roster. Of course, the Kings have a couple of guys to turn to, with veteran forward Dario Saric expected to take on the starting role in Murray's absence, but that does not help the huge defensive void.

"We just hope he gets a speedy recovery and he comes back with confidence," Sabonis finished.

Murray is one of the premier defensive talents in the NBA, while being a 37% shooter from beyond the arc. While Murray's three-point shot has taken a dip since his rookie campaign, his defensive and on-ball skill sets have expanded, making him a much more versatile threat. Of course, it is harder for Murray to reach his offensive peak alongside DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine, but he still finds ways to impact the game on both sides of the ball.

The Kings will undoubtedly miss Murray, and every player does not hesitate to acknowledge that, but they simply have to move on and learn to win without him on the floor.

Domantas Sabonis speaks on the injury

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