Kings C Sabonis Sets Historic Rebounding Mark

While the Sacramento Kings are yet to pick up a victory, Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis have looked like the NBA All-Star talents that they were before missing most of last season with injuries.

LaVine, who scored 37 in the Kings' tight loss against the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday night, is currently the NBA's fourth-leading scorer, averaging 28 points per game.

While Sabonis is far-and-away the league's leading rebounder, and is shooting over 80% from the field.

With his 15 rebounds against Memphis, Sabonis has set a post-merger NBA record for most boards through a player's first three games of the season (52), passing NBA Hall of Fame big man Moses Malone (49 rebounds, 1982-1983).

Sabonis does a great job of positioning himself for easy put-back opportunities on the offensive glass, while swallowing up defensive rebounds.

Through three games, he is by himself among the rebounding leaders this season, with no other player totaling more than 37 rebounds to this point.

Sabonis' 17.3 rebounds per game is also the NBA-lead by a wide margin, with Minnesota Timberwolves big man Rudy Gobert trailing behind Sabonis at 12.3.

Sabonis has also been the Kings' lead-assist man, averaging seven per game and recording a triple-double in Game 2.

Following the Kings' opening loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, Sabonis talked about being the offensive hub for the team, initiating the offense from the perimeter.

"I feel like we're best when we kind of mix it up - point guard shoots, point guard hits the corner, point guard hits me, then I can make the read - that's where I'm best at," Sabonis said.

The former Gonzaga standout noted that he didn't see enough ball movement in Sacramento's opening loss, saying the team "took a lot of one-pass shots."

This adjustment has been a recipe for success to this point, as rookie point guard Darius Acuff Jr. continues to look more comfortable in two-man actions with his star big man and the team has converted on more 3-point opportunities.

Acuff's continued growth as a playmaker should only help Sabonis get easier looks, as he is already converting on 80.8% of his shot attempts.

Sabonis is also 1-for-1 on his lone 3-point attempt of the year, while shooting over 86% from the free-throw line.

Entering the season, Sabonis was coming off of a poor-shooting year with Sacramento, where he shot a career-low 18.5% from distance in his limited appearances.

Having Sabonis feeling confident from the outside will open up lanes for players to drive, and add another element to Sabonis' ability to playmake.

The Kings travel to face off with the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday at 8:00 p.m., meaning Sabonis will have his hands full with reigning Defensive Player of the Year Victor Wembanyama.