Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis. Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Sacramento Kings dealt major blow with Domantas Sabonis injury

By Yagya Bhargava | Last updated Feb 18, 2026 5:13 PM ET

The Sacramento Kings were hoping Domantas Sabonis could work through his left meniscus tear without going under the knife. He suffered the injury in November and decided to skip surgery, targeting a return sometime in January instead.

Sabonis did make it back to the court in mid-January, but things didn't go as planned. He only played in eight of the team's final 15 games heading into the All-Star break, and his minutes were limited to 24.9 per game.

The rhythm he had before the injury just was not there, and it became clear the original approach was not working.

Now the Kings are taking a different route. ESPN insider Shams Charania reported Wednesday that Sabonis underwent surgery to repair the meniscus damage. The procedure is done, and Sacramento will be without its starting center for what's left of the 2025-26 season.

Sacramento Kings star Domantas Sabonis underwent season-ending surgery on Wednesday morning to repair the torn meniscus in his left knee, sources tell ESPN. Sabonis rehabbed the meniscus tear during the season and tried to play through the injury before having surgery now. pic.twitter.com/1Y1g2eqg9L
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 18, 2026

Given where the Kings sit in the standings and the fact that Sabonis still was not moving right, the franchise chose to handle it now rather than let him keep grinding through it. The belief is that surgery gives him the best chance to be fully healthy when next season rolls around.

Zach LaVine also set to undergo season-ending surgery

Sabonis was not alone in getting season-ending work done. Per insider Chris Haynes, guard Zach LaVine also had surgery Wednesday to fix a tendon tear in his right pinkie finger, making it two key players shutting it down for the year.

BREAKING: Sacramento Kings guard Zach LaVine will undergo season-ending surgery on his right hand after the All-Star break, league sources tell me. He averaged 19.2 points, shot 48 percent from the field and 39 percent from beyond the arc. pic.twitter.com/uph3thRMSD
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 14, 2026

When Sabonis was on the floor this season, he delivered. He appeared in 19 games and averaged 15.8 points, 11.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists. His all-around game was still there, even if his availability was not.

The real issue is Sacramento's season as a whole. The Kings are 12-44 and sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference.

That is nowhere near the expectations they had coming into the year.

Yagya Bhargava

Yagya Bhargava began his professional journey as a chef, but his passion for sports eventually led him into sports journalism. He started writing in 2022 and has since published more than 5,000 articles covering the NFL and NBA. Along the way, he’s worked with outlets like The Cold Wire, Sportskeeda, The SportsRush, and The Big Lead

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