


Domantas Sabonis will be in Sacramento for the long haul, and he’ll be well-compensated for it.
The Kings prevented Sabonis from hitting the open market next summer by inking a renegotiation and extension totaling $217 million over five years, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Saturday night.
The deal gives Sabonis an $8.6 million raise next season before a four-year extension kicks in.
Sabonis, who was dealt to Sacramento in a trade that sent Tyrese Haliburton back to Indiana midway through the 2021-22 season, made his third ever All-Star team last season and was key to the Kings making it back to the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
It was also the first time since that 2005-06 season that the Kings were over .500, with a 48-34 record.
Sacramento pushed the Warriors to seven games in the first round before falling in Game 7 at home, but with a young core centered on Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox, figure to be back in the mix next season.
Sabonis led the league with 12.3 rebounds per game while scoring nearly 20 points, getting named to the All-NBA third team.
According to ESPN, he was also just one of two players to average 12 rebounds and five assists on 60 percent shooting, and Nikola Jokic was the only player in the league with more triple-doubles.
Renegotiating and extending is a rarity in the NBA, but it has been used before with superstars — namely Russell Westbrook and Oklahoma City, then James Harden and Houston, both in 2016.
The Kings are also bringing back Harrison Barnes on a three-year, $53 million deal and bringing in Sasha Vezenkov of the EuroLeague on a three-year, $20 million contract, per Wojnarowski.
Vezenov, 27, is a two-time MVP of the Greek League and is a career 40 percent 3-point shooter in the EuroLeague.