Žalgiris Sabonis made his professional
club debut in 1981, with one of the oldest basketball teams in Lithuania,
Žalgiris, in his hometown of
Kaunas. With the club, he won three consecutive
Soviet Premier League titles, and the
1986 FIBA Club World Cup (FIBA Intercontinental Cup). During the 1991–92 season, Sabonis helped the team to reach the semifinals at the
Korać Cup.
Real Madrid In 1992, after playing with Fórum Valladolid for three seasons, Sabonis joined the Spanish club
Real Madrid, and with them, he won two
Spanish League titles, and a
FIBA European League (EuroLeague) title, in
1994–95. With Real Madrid, during the
1994–95 Spanish League season, he averaged 22.9 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.6 steals, and 2.3 blocked shots, in 42 games played. While in the
1994–95 FIBA European League season, he averaged 21.8 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.8 steals per game, in 17 games played. While a member of Real, Sabonis was twice voted the
FIBA European League Player of the Year, in 1993 and 1995, and he was also voted the
FIBA European League Final Four MVP, in 1995.
Portland Trail Blazers Sabonis was originally selected by the
Atlanta Hawks with the 77th overall pick of the
1985 NBA draft. However, the selection was voided because Sabonis was under 21 at the time of the draft. The following spring, he suffered a devastating
Achilles' tendon injury. Nevertheless, he was selected by the
Portland Trail Blazers, with the 24th overall pick of the
1986 NBA draft. Sabonis was not allowed to play in the US by the Soviet authorities, despite
LSU Tigers head coach
Dale Brown's plans to have Sabonis studying and playing at
Louisiana State University, thus keeping him in an
amateur status. However, he did go to
Portland, to rehabilitate his injury with the Blazers medical staff, in 1988, while also practicing with the team. After the 1994–95 European season, Sabonis and Portland contacted one another about a move to the
NBA. Before signing Sabonis, Portland's then-general manager,
Bob Whitsitt, asked the Blazers team physician to look at Sabonis' X-rays. Illustrating the impact of Sabonis' numerous injuries, Whitsitt recalled in a 2011 interview, that when the doctor reported the results, "He said that Arvydas could qualify for a
handicapped parking spot, based on the X-ray alone." Nevertheless, the Blazers signed Sabonis. He had a successful rookie campaign, averaging 14.5 points, on 55% shooting, and 8.1 rebounds per game while playing less than 24 minutes per game. Sabonis was already 30 when he joined the Blazers, by which time he had already won multiple gold medals, suffered through numerous injuries, and had lost much of his mobility and athleticism. In
Bill Simmons's "Book of Basketball", Sabonis the international player is idealized, while Sabonis the Blazer is described as "lumbering up and down the court in what looked to be concrete Nikes" and ranking "just behind
Artis Gilmore on the Moving Like a Mummy Scale." In
ESPN's David Thorpe's view, Sabonis would be the best passing big man in NBA history, and possibly a top-four center overall, had he played his entire career there. In
Clyde Drexler's view, if Sabonis had been able to spend his prime in Portland, next to the plethora of other Trail Blazers' All-Stars (Drexler,
Terry Porter,
Buck Williams,
Steve Johnson,
Kevin Duckworth, and
Clifford Robinson), the Trail Blazers would "have had four, five or six titles. Guaranteed. He was that good. He could pass, shoot three pointers, had a great post game, and dominated the paint." Despite his height and weight, he was "a magician in the post who played the game with a style I've never seen from a big man. He was a point guard in a center's body. And, just to be fair to Arvydas, he was better than most point guards are at distributing the ball." His age and injuries made him appear as a "big guy who looked like he couldn't make it up the court, but the same guy who made the defense look foolish with a pass that whizzed by their ear. It just goes to show you how smarts and court savvy will always age better than a guy with no brains and all athletic ability". On 6 April 2001, Sabonis scored a season-high 32 points while making 11 of 12 field goal attempts during a 122–91 win over the
Golden State Warriors. After the
2000–2001 NBA season, Sabonis refused to sign an extension with the Trail Blazers and retired from the NBA. In his own words, he "was tired mentally and physically." Instead, he returned to Europe, where he signed a one-year deal, at a nominal salary, with
Žalgiris Kaunas, expecting to join the team for the most important games of the season down the stretch. However, he ended up missing that season in its entirety, resting and recovering from injuries. Sabonis rejoined the Trail Blazers for one final season, in 2002–2003. He won the
Euroscar twice while playing with the Blazers. He also became a fan favorite,
Back to Žalgiris Sabonis went back to
Žalgiris to play his final season, in 2003–04. He led the team to the Top 16 stage of the
EuroLeague that year, and was named both the
Group Stage MVP and the
Top 16 Stage MVP. He also became the team's president. Sabonis would officially retire from playing professional basketball, in 2005. ==National team career==