Kings big man Domantas Sabonis made a significant change to his day-to-day life to protect his mental health.
Sabonis, quite literally, has tuned out the haters during the 2023-24 NBA season.
In an appearance on the "Woj Pod" with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Sabonis explained why he gave up social media this year.
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“Me personally, I deleted all my social media at the beginning of the season,” Sabonis told Wojnarowski. “You know, it’s been the best thing ever. You don’t have to worry about any of ‘that.’ You just go out there and play your game. You have your coaches, your family [and] your teammates, and their opinion is the only one that matters. You just got to go out there, trust your game, and play.
“No matter what it is, good or bad, something’s creeping in your mind, so better not to even see it, in my opinion.”
On social media, fans can be more vulgar with their takes about athletes than they might be in an NBA arena.
NBA
Sabonis wisely puts the words of his friends and family over those of naysayers online and is reaping the benefits.
“It’s amazing,” Sabonis stated. “You have a lot more free time. Your mind is clear. You watch film and you try and learn by yourself, you don’t need to read or hear anything from anyone else because, at the end of the day, you’re the one on the court playing.”
Sabonis doesn’t need any outsiders telling him how to do his job.
Considering he’s averaging 19.5 points, 13.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists over 78 games for Sacramento and has posted 61 consecutive double-doubles, Sabonis appears to be excelling in his time away from screens.
Social media can be intimidating, but Sabonis has found the perfect counter: deletion.