Pacers’ Sabonis named to first NBA All-Star team

Indiana Pacers center Domas Sabonis has taken his game to the next level this season, and he was rewarded for his improvement on Thursday night as the NBA announced that he’ll be an Eastern Conference reserve in next month’s All-Star Game.

Making his 1st #NBAAllStar appearance… Domantas Sabonis of the @Pacers.

Drafted as the 11th pick in 2016 out of Gonzaga, @Dsabonis11 is averaging 18.0 PPG, 12.8 RPG and 4.6 APG for the Pacers this season. pic.twitter.com/OsbwYYlKiL

— 2020 NBA All-Star (@NBAAllStar) January 31, 2020

Sabonis, 23, leads the Pacers in rebounds (12.8 per game) while ranking second in scoring (18.0 points), third in assists (4.0) and second in field goal percentage (53.5%). He ranks third in the NBA with 37 double-doubles and collected the first two triple-doubles of his career on the Pacers’ recent road trip.

With Sabonis’ selection, both players acquired by the Pacers in the 2017 trade that sent Paul George to Oklahoma City have been named All-Stars since coming to Indiana. Sabonis joins Victor Oladipo, who was an All-Star in both 2018 and ’19.