Knight recently said that he had heard about a young center whom the Soviet coaches were developing for the Los Angeles Games. ''Maybe they make them in a lab,'' Knight joked then.

When Aleksandr Gomelsky, the Soviet coach, was asked what region Kaunas is located in, he said, ''Basketball country.'' ''Much basketball boom,'' Gomelsky said. ''Very many little boys grow in basketball schools. People like basketball.'' Sabonis obviously grew very quickly. Gomelsky included him among four players from this touring team whom the Soviet Union plans to use in the Los Angeles Olympic Games. Already, the coach compares him to Aleksandr Belov, the forward who became a hero when his controversial basket gave the Soviet Union a disputed victory over the United States and the 1972 gold medal. ''But he is bigger,'' Gomelsky said of Sabonis. ''He plays inside.''

And at 17, his development has just really begun. Showed Versatility Early

''Two years ago,'' Gomelsky said, ''he played on the national junior team. He was not very good. He plays every day. Now he's a good player.''

Sabonis did not take long to establish that himself. He scored 10 of his team's first 16 points in almost as many different ways as there are to score.

He led a fast break, passed the ball, and took a return pass for a layup. He took a loose ball underneath the offensive boards and scored. He made another drive and scored before he was charged with an offensive foul. He banked in a turnaround, 12-foot jump shot. And Sabonis fell away from Blab for a 12-foot shot that gave the the Soviet team a 16-12 lead.