Sacramento Kings Star Duo Learning Each Other's Tendencies

It's been twenty days since Zach LaVine made his Sacramento Kings debut, and with eight games and a few practices under their belts, the team looks like they are starting to gel and figure each other out.

Part of the struggle that the Kings faced after the trade was the roster figuring how to play with each other, specifically LaVine and Domantas Sabonis. But last night something clicked, as LaVine led the Kings to a big win with 42 points on 16-of-19 from the field and 8-of-9 from three.

Sabonis is the offensive hub of the team. They consistently run the offense through him at the top of the key as Sabonis orchestrates the dribble handoff offense (DHO) that the Kings love to run. According to NBA.com, the Kings run the most handoff plays in the league with 9.2 per contest.

The Chicago Bulls on the other hand, LaVine's former team, only run 3.4 per game. It's no wonder that it's taken awhile for LaVine and Sabonis to click.

Sactown 1140's Brenden Nunes asked Sabonis about learning LaVine's tendencies and Sabonis explained the growing connection between him and the sharpshooter. "We talked a couple days ago in terms of how he likes the ball," Sabonis said. "He likes the ball passed to him so he can hold the ball and create. What I do with the other guys, he prefers it a different way. So, that’s good to know.”

Domantas Sabonis talked about how he’s adjusting to Zach LaVine tendencies and preferences.

“We talked in the last couple of days… he likes it different than other guys so I’m glad he spoke up.”

“He likes the ball passed to him so he can hold the ball and create. What I do… pic.twitter.com/ALKZCI8FOF
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) February 25, 2025

Sabonis generally lets the ball handler come all the way to him before he hands off the ball and sets the screen. LaVine getting the ball with a little more space though allows him to use his explosiveness to work around the screen in the way that works best for him.

LaVine is a unique talent in the fact that he shoots great from beyond the arc both on catch and shoot attempts (41.1%) and off the dribble (43.5%). Him catching the ball a little way out from Sabonis opens up his game for both of those opportunities.

It doesn't seem like a coincidence that LaVine had his best game of the season shortly after talking through tendencies with Sabonis. If last night is any indication, the two have the potential to be a lethal duo in the DHO and pick and roll game as the Kings fight for a playoff spot.

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