21-year-old Arvydas Sabonis being the prototypical modern elite big in the 1986 Euroleague championship game - 27-14-4, ejected early in second half for punching a guy
Even as a broke down old man he was fun to watch on the blazers. He would have spells where you could not stop him
Am a lakers fan. If he was couple years younger you guys beat us no doubt. Like you said, spurts of brilliance and even frustrates Shaq. But his body couldn’t hold up over a season or even sustain that level of play for a whole game sadly.
I was driving a limo (and limo bus) in those days and we would pick up at the players entrance at the rose garden and I’d see him sometimes and he could barely walk after games. It was amazing he could play at all
He had those double knee braces - and it just highlighted how truly massive his legs were. Next to Hakeem it was like an Oak next to a Pine tree.
I dont know if I recall he dude jumping much, but his passing was great to watch back then. A man ahead of the times.
he wasnt jumping at all, he only got to the nba after two achilles tears and he only got to the league at 31
he dude jumping much
By the time he got to the nba, a team doctor said he could qualify for a handicapped parking sticker based on x rays of his feet alone
The Blazers GM when Sabonis finally came to the NBA, Bob Whitsitt, has since said that the team doctor told him that Sabonis could’ve qualified for a handicap placard, based on his x-ray and MRI imaging alone.
That was right before they finally signed him in 1995 as an NBA rookie at the age of 30. Sabonis that year went on to be runner-up Rookie of the Year and runner-up Sixth Man of the Year.
If you’re wondering why Sabonis looks so much bigger than everyone else, he was about 7’3, 280
“He could do everything. He had the skills of Larry Bird and Pete Maravich. He had the athleticism of Kareem, and he could shoot the 3-point shot. We shills have hatched a plan to kidnap him and bring him to the league right then.”
Bill Walton on seeing the 19-year-old Sabonis play in 1984
Pre-injuries, 17-year-old Sabonis outplayed 21-year-old Ralph Sampson in a head to head exhibition game back went Sampson was a 3x college player of the year and the first pick, and he went toe to toe with a young David Robinson.
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Yeah, you’re right. His first major Achilles tendon injury was that summer in 1986, he played through it against Robinson. 16-13 vs 20-7 for Robinson
His two major Achilles injuries occurred in 1987. He had a strain in 1986, but I don’t think that’s the same nor can I even fully confirm that except for non-news sources. I don’t know why when it looked it up, the AI search says tore in 1986, I know that’s not correct from the actual sources. There’s many sources for that as the article from May 1987 talks about his rupture and a later 1996 rookie article talks about the full timeline. He played the first time in the 1986 WC fully healthy after the strain recovery (posterized David Robinson and showed his all world athleticism) and then the 1988 Olympics as a multi-times injured player.
Here’s a super detailed 1996 article when he first came over as a rookie that somewhat details this. He first had a partial rupture in 1987 and then he fell down a flight of stairs and had a full rupture in that same year. He was never the same, making his 1988 gold over Robinson more impressive.
https://www.deseret.com/1996/5/4/19240276/what-ifs-abound-when-contemplating-sabonis/
If you look up Achilles strain, it’ll say he had a 1986 Achilles strain, although that’s from a Reddit source (not an actual news source that I could find), but somehow that’s become a tear when the AI interpreted it. At best it’s just some ankle/small strain, but I’m not even sure I can confirm since there aren’t old sources that say this until recently.
Thanks. Had forgotten the exact timeline and just saw that was his first Achilles injury
I wonder how he fell down the stairs. Maybe he was wasted?
the way it was described in one of the arvydas sabonis documentaries is that he was still healing from his first surgery, and he was climbing up the stairs, and the stairs were tiny, he has huge feet so he slipped. he then still continued to finish going up to his apartment and only the next morning when he woke up did he call his doctor. now im not gonna pretend that people cant lie, but thats the story that he himself has told :]]
I love the Walton quote. Bill Simmons puts Walton’s health up there with Len Bias as the biggest “what ifs” in NBA history. But Arvydas might clear both to me.
Portland literally has the Mount Rushmore of draft what-ifs. Walton, Sabonis, BRoy, and Oden.
Also that number 2 overall pick in 1984. Could have taken a guard there.
There’s an alternate universe where Portland has the third most championships after Boston and LA.
They really should’ve listened to Bobby Knight and made MJ play center
A shame he couldn’t come stateside sooner. May not have absolutely dominated, given the golden era of big men in the league at the time, but I think his style would’ve accelerated the evolution of bigs. Although, would’ve taken the right coach to have the foresight to not stifle the skills he had that didn’t fit into the traditional big man box. Don Nelson, Rick Adelman, maybe Doug Moe, would’ve been fun to see how they utilized him.
Replace divac with a pre injury sabonis and 😳😳😳😳
So, assuming Portland had his rights (call me lazy, I don’t feel like googling), he likely would’ve been on the early 90s Blazer squad that made the Finals twice with Rick Adelman coaching.
He could have come over as early as 1989, he was held back by Soviet Union coaches who may not have had his best interests at heart. Here’s a good article about it.
https://grantland.com/features/arvydas-sabonis-long-strange-trip/
What held him back after the dissolution of the USSR?
It wasn’t seen as a done thing.
So he went to Europe
A Drexler/Sabonis led version of the early ‘90s Blazers would absolutely have taken a couple titles off MJ.
Yes, I believe that too. Sabonis would have been the league MVP at some point and the MJ wouldn’t have gone 6-0 in the finals if he had to face Sabonis.
We all know about Sabonis in the NBA when he was at the end of his career after he suffered numerous injuries. But to see Sabonis in his prime is possibly the biggest What If in the NBA in the past 35 years.
No. They would have lost to the Houston Rockets multiple times during Houston’s 10 year championship run led by Jordan & Olajuwon after the Rockets traded Sampson to Bulls for Jordan’s draft rights. You know, since we’re living on Fantasy Island.
He would have been equal to David Robinson
Yeah I think he’ll always be one of the big what ifs had he been allowed to come over sooner.
I don’t really think it would’ve accelerated the evolution tbh. He just would’ve been seen as a unicorn that was not replicable most likely.
Bonus Drazen Petrovic sighting at 1;05
He was really good people and forget about him more. Post Sabonis injury, he was the best player in Europe. He also was really good with the Blazers when he played too on a per minutes basis, but he never played much and then left to become All NBA elsewhere.
Yeah and looks like he’s 16
that guy saw arveydas running up and had a moment of clarity
My thoughts exactly..you could for a glimpse of a second see the terror in his body language
Yup, he was amazing and sure fire beast. Only thing people hyperbole about is him being Joker level passer, realistically he was great stationary post passer but that’s where the similarity ends.
We always overrate “you had to be there” guys like Sabonis. Not much film and barely any stats, so the stories take on a life of their own.
Yes, he was an absolute beast who could pass and shoot, but his numbers from Spain and the Soviet national team put him at about 2 assists and less than 1 made three per game. Great player, definitely ahead of his time, not on the Jokic level.
I’d like to see Jokic smoke half a pack of cigs before a game and hoop like Sabonis
you realize that Sabonis’ peak was around 22yo. then he had a double Achilles consecutive injuries and the rest is history.
It impacts nothing of what I’ve already said, I’m well aware of his career and injuries.
It’s possible that prime Sabonis is the GOAT but we will never know.
I had an opportunity to watch him as a kid, my father worked in Europe at the time. He was the best player I’ve ever seen before MJ. And I grew up watching Magic and Kareem.
Also, that Zalgiris team could be playing in the NBA and be really good.
On lonely nights, I think about what Sabonis felt during the Jail Blazers era.
Not breaking new ground here, but Sabas on the Blazers when we drafted him (as opposed to ten years later) would have changed the outcomes of several playoffs (e.g., he woulda killed old ass Bill Cartwright). Also, there would have been the real possibility of him socking Bill Laimbeer in the face, so we missed out on that too. Bummer.
Of course, this imagined scenario assumes he doesn’t sustain the same injuries that kept him out of several of those prime blazers years.
The Blazers had the 2nd most wins from 1990 through 1992 and made 2 finals. Adding a healthy Sabonis during those years right as he was entering his prime (or even a Sabonis at 80% of what he was) absolutely gets them at least one ring if not more.
Young sabonis was the Wemby+jokic prototype. Too bad he got injured and trapped by the Soviet union to play in the NBA at his best
Peak Sabonis was at almost Hakeem, Shaq, Duncan Wilt level. Above Admiral, Ewing, Giannis; Jokic, Dirk.
There is fight in spain where he won vs two brothers. he koed one, another sucker punched him from behind, but his big head reacted like it was mosqitto bite, and started chasing this 6ft5 brother. p.s. he koed the center first with head butt.
It’s a shame he didn’t play in the NBA until 1995
He would have cooked the league if healthy and in his prime
He’s not just your-vydas
He’s not just my Vydas, he’s Arvydas.
Sabonis was the only guy strong enough to guard Shaq in the post. Had he been a few years younger that dude would’ve tore up the league.
…yeah
Bouncier joker. Not quite the passer though damn sure moved for a true big.
Can a Lithuanian person say what is the correct way to stress his last name? Like in video Sábonis, or Sabónis?
The latter, the pronunciation in the video is incorrect.
If I had to write the pronunciation in English it would be “sah bow nis”
Sabonis had been healthy, he would’ve put up a serious fight to Shaq
We were walking behind he and his family before an Xmas game in OKC. My dad pointed him out to me and was giving me his lore. He then immediately transitioned into openly sexualizing his equally massive daughter.
Clip from European Champions Cup Final, Budapest, April, 3rd 1986., Cibona Zagreb - Žalgiris Kaunas 94-82. The day when Dražen Petrović (white shirt #10) and teammates won their 2nd title in a row. And, yes, Sabonis was there.
Shaq voice: baby Sabonis
Do the headbutt highlight, that’s my favorite! He was not to be fucked with either.
The second biggest IF is what if Laimbeer decided to mess with healthy young Sabonis.
Legend
“Well, I’m the best center in the game. When you try me with a sorry-ass counter-revolutionary like Arapović, that’s the result you gon’ get.”
He’s like Embiid but a better passer.
Getting ejected for punching a guy is actually the most important stat for elite all-time big men
Basically a Jokic with hops.
Yeah he was good but also 21 yo Drazen Petrovic winning his second European Champions Cup in a row.
Even as a Lakers fan I loved watching old and broken Arvydas play. Injuries and the political state of the world really robbed the NBA of an all time great
He was a bad dude
The defense back then is so laughable man. The fact people try to compare eras like it’s even close is so ridiculous and just fueled by pure nostalgia.
What a fucking plumber.
Bronny is closer to Bron than Sabonis is to Sabonis
I feel stupider for having just read this.
Damn… you ain’t wrong
I mean he is, incredibly wrong.
Domantis is a three time all star, Bronny is basically the last man off the bench.
Even broken down Domantis is far better than Bronny will likely ever be.
You are correct.
You can tell who is younger or doesn’t really know ball on this sub because they constantly tell you in their comments lol.