The Kings were sluggish in an early start. How De’Aaron Fox helped lead the charge
The ball went up early, but the shots would not fall.
For the first 7½ minutes of this noontime East Coast contest, the only King who could knock down shots was De’Aaron Fox. As Sacramento put up miss after miss, allowing the New York Knicks to build a 15-point advantage, Fox was 3 of 4 while his teammates were 0 for 11.
As the team ramped up its defensive effort, the offense soon followed.
The result was Sacramento opening its four-game trip with a 102-94 victory over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. The Kings’ second-year point guard was a key reason why.
Fox finished with a game-high 30 points and eight assists for the Kings (33-32), who led by as many as 12 but fought off a struggling New York squad that briefly regained the lead in the final period.
“De’Aaron Fox was terrific for us,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “He came out and was very aggressive.”
Fox was the only King to make more than half of his shots, finishing 11 of 17 (64.7 percent), including a 12-point fourth quarter in which he was 5 of 5 from the field.
While he is not the team’s leading scorer, he is widely regarded as the Kings’ leader. Opposing players and coaches often speak of Fox when asked about Sacramento.
“He is a big-time talent,” Knicks coach David Fizdale said. “He has that true point-guard court presence. He knows how to get his guys shots and at the same time when to turn it on and go and get his own. For a young guy to have that kind of feel for the game, that is pretty special.”
Dennis Smith Jr. led the Knicks (13-53) with 18 points. He and his backup point guard, Emmanuel Mudiay, were the primary players assigned to guard Fox.
“He’s really improved his outside shooting, so it makes it tough,” Mudiay said. “He’s one of the top-three fastest guards in the league, so he puts pressure on the defense.”
Saturday’s game tipped off at 9 a.m. back home, earlier than the team practices in Sacramento, which could have a bit to do with the team’s sluggish start. Fox attributes improved defense for allowing the Kings to bounce back after the Kings gave up 30 points in the first period.
“Sometimes with games like that, shots aren’t going to fall. We shot the ball terribly in the first quarter,” he said. “Once the defense started picking up in the second quarter, that’s when shots started to fall. I think it’s attributed to our energy and just being able to pick it up for the rest of the game.”
Fox’s teammate was complimentary but not surprised by the performance.
“Big time,” Kings center Willie Cauley-Stein said of Fox. “That’s what you ask for in a point guard. ... I felt like he did what was supposed to do.”
The Kings beat the Knicks for the second time in less than a week. Sacramento won a tightly contested game Monday at Golden 1 Center. Joerger was pleased to open the trip on a positive note.
“It wasn’t always pretty, but we’re happy to get out with a win,” he said.
This story was originally published March 9, 2019 at 12:12 PM.