Kings vs. Spurs: Should Sacramento boo De’Aaron Fox? Injury news and 3 things to watch
Kings fans booed a picture of De’Aaron Fox last time there was a game at Golden 1 Center.
They will have an opportunity to boo him in person Friday when he returns to Sacramento for the first time as a member of the San Antonio Spurs.
The Kings will be home for the first time in 11 days when they play host to the Spurs. They were closing out a 130-88 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Feb. 24 when the gameday operations staff put Fox’s picture on the giant videoboard to promote their next home game.
Fans booed loudly amid the fallout from a messy breakup after the Kings traded a franchise great who spent almost eight seasons in Sacramento. Whether they boo him in person will require individual and collective soul searching for a fan base that has typically maintained special relationships with its players over the years.
The Kings (32-29) had won four in a row and seven of nine before suffering a 116-110 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday at Ball Arena. They are ninth in the Western Conference, two games behind the Golden State Warriors for the No. 6 seed. Malik Monk (toe) and Domantas Sabonis (hamstring) are out due to injuries.
The Spurs (26-34) are coming off a 127-113 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. They’ve won two of three after losing four in a row with Victor Wembanyama out for the rest of the season with deep vein thrombosis.
Here are three things to watch in Friday’s game.
Fox’s return
Kings fans used to love Fox when he was angry at opposing players and officials. Booing him might trigger the same kind of ruthless response, but they probably won’t like him when he’s angry now.
Fox averaged 25.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 6.1 assists while shooting 46.9% from the field and 32.2% from 3-point range in 45 games for the Kings. In his first 13 games for the Spurs, he has averaged 19.3 points, shooting 43.7% overall and 26.4% from beyond the arc with a slight increase in assists and a slight decrease in turnovers.
Fox will probably come out on the attack against his former team. The Kings will have to find a way to limit his efficiency and effectiveness to prevent him from having a big scoring night.
Sacramento’s injuries
Sabonis will miss his third game after straining his left hamstring early in Saturday’s win over the Houston Rockets. Monk will miss his second game after an MRI confirmed he suffered a right toe sprain in Monday’s victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
The Kings will likely start Ellis in place of Monk and Jonas Valanciunas in place of Sabonis as they did against the Nuggets. Ellis, who will probably draw the defensive assignment on Fox, had 11 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals against Denver. Valanciunas has been outstanding in the absence of Sabonis, averaging 15.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks over the past four games.
Wembanyama’s absence
The Spurs aren’t the same without Wembanyama, who was on his way to winning his first Defensive Player of the Year award before being ruled out for the rest of the season.
The 2024 Rookie of the Year was having a stellar second season, averaging 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 3.8 blocked shots and 1.1 steals while shooting 47.6% from the field and 35.2% from 3-point range on 8.8 attempts per game.
Spurs at Kings
When: 7 p.m.
Where: Golden 1 Center
TV: NBC Sports California
Radio: Sactown Sports 1140
Odds: Kings -5.5
Over/under: 236.5
Injury report
Kings: QUESTIONABLE — Malik Monk (toe). OUT — Isaiah Crawford (G League); Mason Jones (G League); Domantas Sabonis (hamstring).
Nuggets: QUESTIONABLE — Vlatko Cancar (knee); Aaron Gordon (ankle); Nikola Jokic (ankle); Zeke Nnaji (ankle); Peyton Watson (knee). OUT — Trey Alexander (G League); PJ Hall (G League); DaRon Holmes II (Achilles); Julian Strawther (knee).
