In the 4th Quarter, De’Aaron Fox is in His Element
How Last Season’s Clutch Player of the Year Delivered the Kill Shot to the Phoenix Suns
De’Aaron Fox is as Advertised
The reigning Clutch Player of the Year is back in his bag.
While the Sacramento Kings avoided the danger zone against the Phoenix Suns, a 4th quarter haymaker from De’Aaron Fox delivered the knockout blow.
In the 4th quarter alone, Fox had 23 points (6–9 Shooting | 3–3 from 3 and 8–10 from the Foul Line) and 2 Assists. He committed 2 inconsequential turnovers, and the Kings took one on the road 114–106 against the Suns.
This article isn’t an attempt to draw anything conclusive or cause worry regarding either team. The goal of this analysis is to detail how and why De’Aaron Fox has felt like such an impossible cover this season for opposing NBA teams.
Containing a Blur
When the Sacramento Kings get into their early offense, the guards and Domantas Sabonis are given the greenlight to push tempo to get the offense into their action, often wide or delay action. If they don’t get into either of these staples, they have no issues reverting to a ball screen or dribble-handoff.
When De’Aaron Fox is pushing the pace, he is looking to get downhill and penetrate before the defense can load-up and form a wall against him.
With 21-seconds on the shot-clock and nobody on the Phoenix Suns below the foul line, Fox will become ultra-aggressive hunting his shot.
The electric speed of Fox puts him into situations where he can “steal” points from opponents. Most players are not capable of deep dribble penetration when the entire defense has locked onto the ball. With Fox, this is where he is most punishing.
Fox is getting north, with nobody flanking Jordan Goodwin. As possibly the league’s fastest player, there’s no containing Fox in the open court, especially if you’re on an island. Once Fox gets into the lane, Goodwin gets handsy and swipes Fox’s arms after he gathers.
A sneaky addition to the game of Fox is how he extends and rips his arms through defenders to establish contact and land on the charity stripe.
Horns Double High Ball Screen
The action on this next made basket is lethal. Every team in the league runs horns, and every team in the league runs ball screens.
But nobody else in the National Basketball Association has De’Aaron Fox.
We’ve started seeing teams set ball screens closer and closer to halfcourt. Often, a player with incredible range or driving ability can shred ball screen coverage with ease given the amplified space.
To demonstrate, notice how once the ball screen is being set; 3 Phoenix Suns players are above the 3-point arc (Jordan Goodwin, Yuta Watanabe, and Jusuf Nurkic). This is a compromising position for the defense, especially the screener defenders — Nurkic and Watanabe.
Tasked with extending out to guard the ball screen, they must now shift momentum and attempt to defend a homerun hitter.
Coming off the ball screen, Fox is getting into a huge driving gap with Eric Gordon being the lowest man away from the ball. In these scenarios, it is almost an automatic bucket if Fox can get the edge on Watanabe switching out.
Similarly, to the last bucket, Fox is once against coming off a horns double high ball screen. This time, he drives right and sees Nurkic dropping back. Going towards his guide hand, this is an open invitation to take the pull-up jumper.
Unable to get through the screen, Goodwin is a couple steps behind Fox and cannot properly rearview contest.
That is a perfect encapsulation of why this is such a difficult action to defend against nuclear talents.
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It also pinpoints how brutal a dropping big looks when the point of attack defender cannot get over & through the ball screen.
2-Man Game with Domantas Sabonis
The synergy between De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis is a topic for a different article, but the way they operate off each other offensively is a sight to behold. Regardless of whether it’s a dribble-handoff or ball screen, Sabonis has helped unlock the greatest version of Fox.
Following the DHO, Jusuf Nurkic shows on Fox to allow Josh Okogie to get back onto Fox. Patiently, Fox gives a ball-fake and Nurkic returns to his man (Sabonis).
Operating in space vs. Okogie, Fox gives him a jab left and takes 1-dribble to his right. Having a refined triple-threat and jab series is crucial for buying scorers a half-step of separation against the best defenders in the league.
The shot is credibly contested by Okogie; just a textbook example of great offense beating good defense.
Snaking the Pick & Roll to Your Kill Spot
On this double-drag, the effort from Josh Okogie to fight over and through both screens was noble.
Unfortunately for him, the 2nd screen from Domantas Sabonis laid him out. Following this screen, De’Aaron Fox turns the corner and Sabonis dives. Whenever Fox comes off a pick, look for him to snake the screen into a midrange pull-up. Especially if the big is dropping like Jusuf Nurkic is here.
As Fox is getting to that 14-foot range, Sabonis is sealing Nurkic from contesting the jumper. This is excellent manipulation from the ball handler (Fox), and dirty work from the big (Sabonis).
The chemistry between Fox & Sabonis is apparent.
Rescreen + Pop
The screen + rescreen game De’Aaron Fox and Keegan Murray play with Josh Okogie is a difficult cat & mouse game for defenders to navigate. Once Yuta Watanabe comes and puts 2 on the ball, the release for Fox is there with the popping Murray.
Versatile shooters and drivers of the basketball are a difficult cover here because of the options they have following the catch. Depending on how the defense executes, both the shot and drive are likely to be available if the player allows the game to come to them.
Against closeouts, the best players can decide to shoot, dribble, or pass in approximately half a second. Operating with a massive driving lane, Murray takes the space granted and gets into the painted area for the bucket.
Just a supercharged performance from Fox. It’s just 1 of 82 but the difference between good teams and mediocre teams is often stars fending the other team off with possession-to-possession dominance.
As NBA fans, we should feel fortunate to be able to watch these performances on a nightly basis across the league. The talent is captivating and widespread. This is truly a special time to be a fan of the association.
Game Film Used
Sacramento Kings @ Phoenix Suns (12/08/2023)
Citations
Shot chart courtesy of NBA(dot)com
Video and image courtesy of the NBA and NBA League Pass
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