20-year-old Domantas Sabonis is set to begin his NBA rookie year in the upcoming 2016-2017 season with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
According to Real GM, the son of former Portland Trailblazers superstar Arvydas Sabonis was officially signed by the Thunder, after he was originally drafted by the Orlando Magic during the 2016 NBA Draft. He was then traded to Oklahoma, along with the Victor Oladipo and Ersan Ilyasova, in exchange for Serge Ibaka.
An 11th overall pick, Sabonis put on an exceptional performance during his two years in the collegiate ranks as a member of the Gonzaga Bulldogs. During his sophomore and final year, he was averaging 17.6 points, along with 11.8 rebounds, and shot 61.1 percent from the field.
He was also an Associated Press Honorable Mention at the 2016 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans. During the March Madness tournament this year, he was able to help his team advance to the Sweet 16 stage. In the said competition, he was averaging 19.6 points, 14.3 rebounds, and 3.3 blocks.
Sabonis will be the newest addition into the Thunder roster, where will be playing alongside Most Valuable Player awardees such as Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry. According to Oklahoma City Thunder General Manager Sam Presti, Sabonis' asset is that he "plays with force", and is optimistic with how he will do as a member of the team, once the season commences.
"I'm excited to watch him continue or to get acclimated with our group because of the way he fits with Steven and Enes and our other bigs, quite frankly. But competitiveness, and force, and IQ for the game. I think he has a chance to be a good player in time," Presti said in an interview with Anthony Slater for The Oklahoman.
Sabonis is also a member of the Lithuanian national basketball team that is currently competing at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The team is coming off a loss on Saturday, against the Spain national team, with a final tally of 105-59.
During the said game, Sabonis scored five points, five rebounds and two assists, shot 28.6 percent from the field, through 24 minutes of playing time.
