The Indiana Pacers took on the Toronto Raptors on Monday night, and the team suffered a notable loss due to injury – big man Domantas Sabonis left the game with a left knee contusion and was not cleared to return, per multiple reports. Luckily, an X-Ray revealed no structural damage.
Domantas Sabonis left tonight's game with a knee contusion and is questionable to return.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) January 26, 2021
Domantas Sabonis will not return with the left knee contusion.
— Pat Boylan (@PatBoylanPacers) January 26, 2021
X-Rays on left knee of Pacers All-Star Domantas Sabonis reveal no structural damage, source tells ESPN. An MRI is planned for Tuesday morning. Sabonis left game after banging knee vs. Raptors tonight.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 26, 2021
Domantas Sabonis had started all 17 of the Pacers’ games and was actually leading the NBA in minutes before his injury with a lofty 38.4 per game.
The Pacers have had a strong start to the season, and they looked like a real contender with Domantas Sabonis shouldering much of the load offensively for the team alongside Malcolm Brogdon.
The 24-year-old son of Hall of Famer Arvydas Sabonis was a having a career year before the injury by putting up an impressive stat line: 20.9 points per game, 12.9 rebounds per game, 5.8 assists per game, 0.9 steals per game all the while with a 59.4 percent true shooting percentage – all of which are career-highs for Domantas Sabonis.
New Pacers head coach Nate Bjorkgren had stated that he would start both Myles and Turner and Sabonis in the front court, something which was met by mild eyebrow-raising in some quarters.
However, that decision is paying off in a big way so far for the Pacers, as Turner looks like a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and Domantas Sabonis is likely the team’s best offensive player.
Domantas Sabonis has been quite durable over the course of his career, though he did suffer from plantar fasciitis in his left foot last season, which is the same leg that was contused on Monday.
Let’s hope this isn’t a serious injury for Domantas Sabonis, who looked to be a shoo-in for an All-Star spot this year.
Domantas Sabonis has a magnified role on the Pacers after the team traded Victor Oladipo earlier in January in one of the biggest NBA transactions of the young season.
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