Views from OKC: Domantas Sabonis is the key to next season

Views from OKC is a public diary from an OKC Thunder fan. Today we look at Domantas Sabonis and why his progression this offseason is vital.

The NBA is unlike any other sports league in the world. Unlike the NFL where rookies can spearhead an offense that yields the best regular season record (see Dallas Cowboys) or European football where an 18-year old can score 14 goals in only 26 appearances (see Kylian Mbappe), rookies tend to struggle in their first season in the League. The game is faster, the players are bigger and the day-to-day travel is much more strenuous.

As a rookie Domantas Sabonis struggled. Sabonis shot over 23% worse from the field compared to his college days. The rebounding monster from Gonzaga only grabbed 3.6 rebounds per game in his first season. Even his free throw percentage dipped.

Yet, OKC Thunder fans have reason to believe the recently turned 21-year old will make a huge jump next season.

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In his first season in the league Sabonis was asked to play a completely different style than his college years. With Steven Adams manning the block down low the rookie had to stay out on the perimeter and space the floor; in college Sabonis owned the block. Domas only attempted 14 threes in his college career, but that number was surpassed (with a deeper line) by his 7th career NBA game. On defense he was asked to guard players who could shoot 25-foot bombs AND take the ball to the rim, a far cry from the power forwards of the West Coast Conference.

Now Sabonis knows what’s expected of him. He has picked up on the smaller nuances of the NBA game, something Adams noted early on in the season. Domas even joined Russell Westbrook in his early morning independent workouts to get extra practice with a superstar.

Let’s look at a second-year player that took the NBA by storm this season.

Rookie year: 10 ppg, 7 rpg, 2.4 apg, 51.2% fg, 33.3% 3fg

Second year: 16.7 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 4.9 apg, 57.8%, 32.4% 3fg

I hate to break it to Thunder fans, but Domantas Sabonis is not Nikola Jokic. But they do have incredibly similar playing styles. Neither are supreme athletes. Both are extremely fundamental. Neither were seen as having high ceilings coming into the draft. Jokic proved those wrong who said he was too lazy, and next season is Sabonis’ opportunity to prove those wrong who said he is not aggressive enough.

When Domas moved to the bench he completely changed as a player. He started playing with a fire we hadn’t seen, commencing in this dunk over Spurs super-athlete Dewayne Dedmon.

Expect more of those plays next season. And expect Sabonis’ usage rating to be much higher than the 15.8% we saw this season. Westbrook will obviously be the focal point of the offense, but Domas’ ability to score and pass out of the post will be huge for the Thunder. Unlike Enes Kanter, Sabonis isn’t looking to score as soon as he touches the ball – he looks to make the right play.

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Domas will likely be back in the starting lineup next season, but if Enes Kanter is in fact traded then he will take a majority of Kanter’s second-unit minutes. Jokic’s powers were unleashed when Denver decided to play him at center instead of at power forward; the same goes for Sabonis.

It’s one thing to put your faith in a talented player. It’s another thing to put your faith in a talented player that also has an outstanding work ethic and basketball mind. Domantas Sabonis may not be Nikola Jokic, but he doesn’t have to be – the Thunder already have their franchise cornerstone in Westbrook.

A big leap from Sabonis could be the difference from another first round exit and a run at the Conference Finals next season. Don’t be surprised when it actually happens.