The Jewish Sport Report: 2024 is officially the year of Zach Hyman and Domantas Sabonis

(JTA) — Hello, sports fans!

Baseball is finally, officially, back — even if the weather did put a damper on Opening Day festivities in New York and Philadelphia. Mets fans will just have to wait one more day to try new ballpark delicacies like the recently unveiled rainbow cookie egg rolls.

As if Mets fans haven’t suffered enough…

Zach Hyman and Domantas Sabonis continue their historic dominance

Rabbi Mendy Cohen is dwarfed by 7-foot-1 Kings center Domantas Sabonis, who attended Chabad of Sacramento’s Purim party on March 7, 2023. (Courtesy of Chabad of Sacramento)

It’s been a year of highs and, well, more highs for Edmonton Oilers winger Zach Hyman and Sacramento Kings big man Domantas Sabonis, both of whom have made history in their respective sports this season.

Hyman has been on an absolute tear, with eight goals in his past eight games, bringing his season total to a career-best 51, good for a tie for second-most in the NHL, behind league leader Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who has 59. Hyman, 31, has blown past his previous career high of 36 goals, and has also eclipsed Jack Hughes’ 43 from last season, making his breakout performance likely the best total of any Jewish player in NHL history. The Oilers are second in the Pacific Division, with 92 points.

Hyman is a Jewish day school graduate, a Maccabiah Games alum and has been active in Edmonton’s Jewish community. He also wears No. 18, inspired by both his son’s birthday, Dec. 18, and the number’s meaning in Judaism. “I’m Jewish, and in Judaism, 18 is a lucky number; it’s chai, which means ‘life’ in Hebrew,” he (accurately) told The Athletic in 2021.

Over in the NBA, Sabonis, who is in the process of converting to Judaism, has made his own history this week, posting the longest double-double streak since the NBA/ABA merger in 1976-77. He also leads the league with 25 triple-doubles this season, ahead of perennial MVP candidates Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Sabonis, who has played in all 72 of the Kings’ games this season, is averaging 19.7 points, 13.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game. If he finishes the season at 20/13/8, he will join all-time great Wilt Chamberlain, also a center, as the only players to reach that clip over an entire season. With 10 games left, the Kings are currently the eighth seed in the Western Conference, with a record of 42-30.

Sabonis, whose wife is Jewish, has also been involved with his local Jewish community. The 27-year-old has been studying with Los Angeles rabbi Erez Sherman and keeps kosher.

Halftime report

UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT. New York Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner faced backlash this week after he told a Jewish influencer that “y’all run the world.”Gardner, the fourth pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, claimed he was unaware of the antisemitic trope he was echoing. “While my intentions were positive, I just learned that people use those exact words I shared for hate towards Jewish people,” Gardner wrote on X. “That is not what I am about and I appreciate those who took the time to educate me on that fact.” The Jewish influencer he was hanging out with, Adin Ross, has his own history of controversy and replied that he was not offended: “You did and said nothing wrong,” Ross wrote.

DEFENDING THE TITLE. The Professional Women’s Hockey League is taking a month-long break as the 2024 International Ice Hockey Federation Women’s World Championship begins next week in New York. Team USA, the tournament’s defending champion, is holding its final evaluation camp this weekend, and goaltender Aerin Frankel is looking to retain her spot on the team. Abbey Levy, who played in last year’s competition, was not invited back.

GOOD MORNING, BALTIMORE. MLB owners unanimously approved David Rubenstein as the new owner of the Baltimore Orioles this week. Rubenstein, who had reached a deal to purchase his hometown team earlier this year, is a longtime donor to Jewish causes, including the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

METEORIC RISE. Houston Astros star third baseman Alex Bregman says he is entering his contract year “at peace.” The Athletic details how the former second overall pick in the 2015 MLB Draft evolved from a “brash” 22-year-old into one of the game’s best players and a “burgeoning businessman with a more cerebral public persona.”

Jews in sports to watch this weekend (all times ET)

⚾️ IN BASEBALL…

Max Fried makes his 2024 debut Saturday at 4:05 p.m. as his Atlanta Braves take on Garrett Stubbs and the Philadelphia Phillies. Dean Kremer will make his first start for the Orioles Monday at 6:35 p.m. against the Kansas City Royals. In Phoenix, Joc Pederson and the Arizona Diamondbacks host Jake Bird and the Colorado Rockies for a four-game series to open the season. (Here’s a refresher on all the Jewish players to watch this season.)

🏀 IN MARCH MADNESS…

It’s the Sweet 16 round in March Madness, and coach Jon Scheyer’s No. 4 Duke squad faces No. 1 Houston tonight at 9:39 p.m. One of Houston’s stars is Emanuel Sharp, who is not Jewish but was born in Tel Aviv; his father and brother have played professionally in Israel. In the women’s tournament, Yarden Garzon and No. 4 Indiana play No. 1 South Carolina today at 5 p.m.; Lindsay Gottlieb’s No. 1 USC team faces No. 5 Baylor tomorrow at 5:30 p.m.; and Camilla Emsbo and No. 7 Duke plays No. 3 UConn tomorrow at 8 p.m.

🏀 IN PRO BASKETBALL…

Deni Avdija and the Washington Wizards host the Detroit Pistons tonight at 7 p.m. and the Miami Heat Sunday at 6 p.m. Domantas Sabonis and the Kings host the Dallas Mavericks tonight at 10 p.m. and the Utah Jazz Sunday at 9 p.m. Amari Bailey and the Charlotte Hornets host the Golden State Warriors tonight at 7 p.m. and the Los Angeles Clippers Sunday at 6 p.m. In the G League, Ryan Turell and the Motor City Cruise play the Raptors 905 tonight at 7:30 p.m. in their final game of their season. Turell made his first G League start last Saturday, making him likely the first Orthodox Jew to start a G League game.

🏒 IN HOCKEY…

Devon Levi and the Buffalo Sabres host Jack and Luke Hughes and the New Jersey Devils tonight at 7 p.m. Zach Hyman and the Edmonton Oilers host the Anaheim Ducks tomorrow at 4 p.m.. The Ducks then head to Vancouver to play Quinn Hughes and the Canucks Sunday at 3:30 p.m.

⚽️ IN SOCCER…

In the Premier League, Matt Turner and Nottingham Forest face Crystal Palace tomorrow at 11 a.m. In the MLS, three Jewish players are in action tomorrow at 7:30 p.m.: Daniel Edelman and the New York Red Bulls host Orlando City; DeAndre Yedlin and FC Cincinnati host Charlotte FC; and Steve Birnbaum and D.C. United play CF Montreal. Zac MacMath and Real Salt Lake play St. Louis City SC Saturday at 9:30 p.m.

⛳️ IN GOLF…

David Lipsky, Daniel Berger, Ben Silverman and Max Greyserman are all competing in the Houston Open this weekend.

Dressing up as a Wizard for Purim

MLB’s Opening Day wasn’t the only holiday Jews celebrated this past week. Purim was last weekend, and Deni Avdija brought hamantaschen to share with his Washington Wizards teammates. Here he is teaching Jordan Poole how to pronounce the cookie’s Hebrew name.