De'Aaron Fox
De'Aaron Martez Fox is an American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association. Fox played one season of college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats before being selected fifth overall by the Kings in the 2017 NBA draft.
High school career
He committed to Kentucky on November 12, 2015, live on ESPNU. He chose Kentucky over Kansas, Louisville, and LSU. Fox attended Cypress Lakes High School in Katy, Texas. As a junior, he averaged 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game. During the summer, Fox joined the Houston Hoops on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League Circuit where he earned EYBL first-team honors. On November 29, Fox scored 31 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists in a 68–53 victory over MacArthur. On December 28, Fox put up 31 points and 6 assists in a 91–81 victory against Jay M. Robinson High School. As a senior, Fox averaged 32.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game. In January 2016, Fox was named a McDonald's All-American and played in the 2016 McDonald's All-American Game on March 30. In April, Fox played in the 2016 Jordan Brand Classic, leading the East team to a 131-117 win while earning Co-MVP honors alongside Kentucky teammate Malik Monk. Fox then competed at the Nike Hoop Summit Games. He made the 2015-16 USA Men's Basketball Men's Junior Team in September 2015. He was also invited to the NBPA Top 100 camp. Throughout his high school career, Fox led Cypress Lakes to three state playoff appearances including a regional final appearance his senior year, and twice scored 50 points in a single game.Fox was the nation's second best point guard behind Lonzo Ball. He was ranked the consensus No. 6 overall recruit in the Class of 2016 by the four main recruiting services Rivals, ESPN, Scout, and 24/7 Sports.
College career
On November 12, 2015, Fox committed to the University of Kentucky to play college basketball for the Wildcats under coach John Calipari. On November 13, 2016, Fox recorded 21 points and 3 assists during a 93-69 victory over Canisius College at the Bluegrass Showcase. Six days later, he posted 16 points and 6 assists to defeat Duquesne University, 93-69. In a game against Arizona State on November 28, he recorded a triple double with 14 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists; this made Fox only the second Wildcat in the history of Kentucky basketball to record one after Chris Mill in 1988. On January 7, 2017, Fox scored 27 points to go along with 6 assists in a 97-71 victory over Arkansas. He tallied 21 points and 5 assists to defeat Mississippi State, 88-81, on January 17. On February 18 that year, Fox scored 16 points and dished out 5 assists to help the Wildcats defeat the Georgia Bulldogs. On March 4, Fox scored 19 points in a 71-63 win over Texas A&M. Kentucky would go on to defeat Georgia in the quarterfinals and Alabama in the semi-finals. On March 12, 2017, Fox scored 18 points in an 82-65 win over Arkansas in the SEC Tournament in addition earning SEC Tournament MVP honors. On March 17, 2017, Fox scored 19 points and 3 assists to defeat Northern Kentucky University in the First round of the NCAA Tournament. On March 19, 2017, Fox scored 14 points to defeat Wichita State 65-62 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. On March 24, 2017, In a Sweet 16 matchup against the UCLA Bruins, Fox scored 39 points to advance the Kentucky Wildcats to the Elite Eight game. On March 26, 2017, Fox only scored 13 points in a 75-73 loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels.At the conclusion of his freshman season, Fox announced that he would forgo his final three years of collegiate eligibility and enter the 2017 NBA draft.
Professional career
Sacramento Kings (2017–present)
Rookie season (2017–18)
On June 22, 2017, Fox was selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings. On July 8, 2017, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Kings. During four games of the 2017 NBA Summer League, Fox averaged 11.8 points, 3 assists and 2.3 steals while playing 21.3 minutes per game. Fox made his NBA debut for the Kings in their season opener on October 18, 2017, against the Houston Rockets, where he scored 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assist in 24-plus minutes in a 105-100 loss. On October 23, 2017, Fox recorded a career-high 19 points, 4 assist, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals in a 117-115 loss against the Phoenix Suns. On December 8, 2017, he scored 14 points, 4 assist and 2 steals in a 116-109 win against the New Orleans Pelicans. On January 6, 2018, Fox recorded 18 points and 7 assist in a 106-98 victory over the Denver Nuggets. On January 25, 2018, Fox scored 14 points, 4 assist and a putback Slam Dunk with 3.3 seconds left giving the Sacramento Kings the lead in an 89-88 win over the Miami Heat. On January 28, 2018, Fox scored a season-high 26 points, going 6-6 from three-point range in a 15-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs. On February 14, Fox was named Lonzo Ball's replacement for the Rising Stars Challenge.Second season (2018–19)
On November 1, 2018, during a 146-115 win over the Atlanta Hawks, Fox notched his first career triple-double with 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 15 assists to bring the Kings to a 6-3 record, becoming the only player after LeBron James in 2005 to score a 30-point triple double before the age of 21. Fox drastically improved during the 2018-2019 season. Not only did he improve in every major statistical category, He also finished top 3 and was nominated for the NBA Most Improved Player Award, finishing second to Pascal Siakam of the 2019 NBA Champion Toronto Raptors. This improvement had been a rejuvenating feeling for the Sacramento Kings, seeing as Fox had not lived up to the initial hype in his rookie season being the 5th overall pick in 2017.Career statistics
NBA
Regular season
College
Player profile
Listed at 6 feet 3 inches & 185 pounds, Fox has primarily played the point guard position throughout his career. He is left-handed.Coming of out Kentucky, Fox was highly regarded among scouts for his quickness, speed, & athleticism. These attributes combined make Fox one of the most dangerous players on the fast break & driving to the rim. Fox has elite ability to explode by defenders, either finishing at the rim or distributing to a teammate. Fox is a high end finisher at the rim being able to use his body control & leaping ability to finish layups & draw fouls. Fox is also capable at scoring off floaters or mid range pull ups while driving. Fox is considered to be an average 3 point shooter averaging 34% of his career as of December 2019 but has shown potential to develop into a good shooter.
Fox has also developed into a dangerous facilitator in his second season, averaging 7.3 assist per game. Most of his assists come from running the pick and roll where his playmaking versatility & dexterity allows him to either throw an alley-oop or bounce pass to the roll man or kick it outside for a jump shot on the perimeter if the defense rotates. He also generates a-lot of his assists running the fast break.
On defense, Fox can be exploited by bigger guards because of his small frame but shows a great knack for intercepting passes & making quick rotations due to his elite quickness & 6 foot 7 inch wingspan. Fox is also a good on ball defender with fast, active hands that can frustrate ball-handlers & has great ability to elude & avoid screens to stay on his man.