When discussing the top point guards currently in the NBA, the likes of Steph Curry and Damian Lillard are often the first two names mentioned. With as big of a following as they have this should come as no surprise. Steph Curry has been on a team that looked like an NBA-All Star team during a 5-year championship contention legacy and while he was injured, Damian Lillard took over the league in his absence. While those are undoubtedly the interchangeable number one and two, the number three, four, and five are where the conversation heats up. Ja Morant, Kyrie Irving, Trae Young, all very marketable and very talented basketball players. But what about the 6’3 Kentucky graduate, De’Aaron Fox?
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Playing for a small-market team like the Sacramento Kings is never going to be nearly as beneficial to a player’s career compared to playing for a team like the Los Angeles Lakers. The marketing opportunities are harder to come by, the fanbase is smaller, and there is little to no media coverage. Even Gordon Hayward has a higher Instagram following than Fox. However, even with the lack of attention, the New Orleans native has been putting up numbers every game for the Kings.
This season, De’Aaron Fox is 20th in the league among all positions for PPG (Points per game) at 24.1, 13th in assists at 7.3 per game, and has 3.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals per game and is shooting 33% from the three-point-line for the cherry on top. These are all-star calibre numbers on a team that is currently sitting at 13th place in the Western Conference and hasn’t been seen in the playoffs since 2006. It is often said that a player is only as good as the teammates around him. Yes, Damian Lillard, Steph Curry, and even Trae Young are all above Fox in the categories named, but if De’Aaron Fox is already putting his name in the conversation on a team like Sacramento, I can only imagine what he would do on a consistent playoff threat.
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