Domantas Sabonis blames himself for missing shots ‘offered’ by Warriors

For a good five seconds on possession, Domantas Sabonis found himself alone in the world. Served at the head of the racket, the Lithuanian first sought to find a cutting teammate in the circle. The Kings pivot ended up looking at the basket and firing his shot, inches from the free throw line. Kevon Looney, who had initially invited him to shoot, staying a good three meters away from him (!), still raised an arm, symbolically…

A soft challenge that the left-hander was unable to sanction. This action, in the middle of the third quarter of Game 7, is representative of the defensive strategy assumed by the defending champions throughout the series: inviting the opposing pivot to take his shots on the periphery.

A bet that paid off as Domantas Sabonis only converted two of his six attempts away from the circle in this game. Throughout this first round, as the Sacramento Bee reportshe managed only 39% of his shots when his defender was located nearly two meters or more from him, including one of his five 3-point attempts.

Result: his percentage of general address has logically dropped compared to the regular season. From an excellent 61.5%, he fell to 49.5% against the Warriors. We will therefore not be surprised by the response of the pivot, at an exit press conference, when asked about the sector in which he intends to work this summer.

” Obviously, my shot, to have confidence in this shot. If they had respected it more, we probably would have had the same situation as throughout the season, playing the way we did, which would have helped us a lot, instead of the insides backing away from me. “, Regrets the 27-year-old player, who also does not know what to answer to Draymond Green in relation to his direct return to the locker room after the defeat.

Neutralize your passing quality

Domantas Sabonis is thus used to being served in this area of ​​the pitch. From there, he can more naturally attack his opponent in penetration, or especially use his quality of pass to serve his partners, in “backdoor” for example. But with Kevon Looney so low in the key, neutralizing the Kings’ cut lines, the former Pacers player’s role as a distributor was much harder to assume.

While he averaged more than 7 passes in the regular season, the one who is considered one of the best interior passers in the league has distributed two less in this series.

” It’s the nature of the playoffs. Opposing teams will try to find what they think are your weaknesses. Domas is an excellent shooter. I always told him: ‘If you’re open, shoot’. Like everyone else, he probably needed to go through a series like this to gain perspective. […] It’s very positive that he wants to continue working and that he is critical of himself. We all have to do the same to come back better than we were this year “appreciates Mike Brown.

One thing’s for sure, his awkwardness on the outskirts shouldn’t be a concern for his future in Sacramento.

” Domas is an essential element in what we do. We’ll do everything in our power to keep him here and build around him. said GM Monte McNair, whose player still has a one-year contract at $19 million but is eligible for a contract extension this summer.

How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def= defensive rebound; Tot = Total bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; Points = Points.