Kings-Trail Blazers Matchup of the Game: Domantas Sabonis vs. Deandre Ayton

The Sacramento Kings head to Portland to face the red-hot Trail Blazers.

Oct 13, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) controls the ball against Portland Trail Blazers center Deandre Ayton (2) during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

After a blowout loss in Zach LaVine's debut, the Sacramento Kings (25-25) head back out on the road to face the red-hot Portland Trail Blazers (22-29)

The Blazers are winners of nine of their last ten games and are the hottest team in the league. They're doing it by committee, with no player averaging over 20 points per contest over the ten-game stretch, but there is one player who has really upped their play of late who gets the nod for the matchup of the game.

Season Stats:

• Domantas Sabonis: 20.6 PTS, 14.3 REB, 6.4 AST, 0.6 STL, 0.4 REB, 60.2 FG%, 46.5 3P%

• Deandre Ayton: 14.6 PTS, 10.4 REB, 1.6 AST, 0.8 STL, 0.9 BLK, 57.2 FG%, 18.8 3P%

The Blazers find themselves in an interesting position. Sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference for most of the year, they now are in the play-in picture. Part of the reason is Ayton's recent uptick in play.

Over the ten-game stretch, he's averaging 19.6 points and 12.3 rebounds on 59.8% shooting from the field. Ayton has a very underrated mid-range jumper and can score in all three levels inside the arc; At the rim, in the floater area, and in the mid-range.

Portland is 7-2 when Ayton scores at least 20 points, so it's proven that his scoring has a huge impact on the outcome of the game.

Sabonis is coming off of another strong performance against the Magic where he scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds on an efficient 8-of-10, 80%, from the field. If Sabonis is having another efficient night, which he typically does, they should look to get him more than ten field goal attempts.

"It's all new for all of us, it's just the first game. We're going to watch film." -Domantas Sabonis on a blowout loss in Zach LaVine's first game with the team

— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) February 6, 2025

What stood out in LaVine's debut though was the Kings' turnovers, of which Sabonis had a team-high four. It's to be expected for him and LaVine to take some time to build their chemistry, especially in the pick-and-roll and dribble handoff game.

Stat predictions:

Domantas Sabonis: 24 PTS, 12 REB, 7 AST, 0 STL, 0 BLK

Deandre Ayton: 16 PTS, 11 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 2 BLK

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