The Sacramento Kings played in a heated battle on Sunday night against their in-state rival Los Angeles Lakers. The game went into overtime with Sacramento eventually prevailing, improving their record to 2-1 on the young season and getting a much-needed win after a loss to the Warriors on Friday. But star point guard De’Aaron Fox missed the entire overtime period while nursing his ankle, and he may be out for even more time after tests were run on his injury.
De’Aaron Fox Will Miss ‘Some Time’, But Avoids Serious Injury
Kings All-Star De’Aaron Fox has avoided significant injury, but has sustained a moderate sprain of his right ankle and he is likely to miss some time, sources tell me and @sam_amick. Fox played through the sprain down stretch of 37 points and victory over Lakers on Sunday.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 30, 2023
During the intense 4th quarter in Sunday’s matchup, Fox suffered a rolled ankle that left him hobbling. With the score of the game being so close and the intensity of the matchup revved up inside Golden 1 Center, adrenaline was pumping for the Kings’ point guard, and he remained in the game despite a clear limp.
But when overtime started, Sacramento’s coaching staff made the decision to keep him off of the floor for the final period. Malik Monk was the hero in the final five minutes, but the Kings wouldn’t have gotten to that spot without 37 points and 8 assists from Fox during the first four frames.
There was a fear that De’Aaron Fox could miss significant time with the ankle injury. But there was somewhat good news that was released on Monday by Shams Charania, who said that while he may miss “some time”, Fox avoided a significant injury. He has a moderate sprain of the right ankle.
Kings Will Need To Step Up In Fox’s Absence
De’Aaron Fox so far this season:
31.3 PPG
6.0 APG
49% FGAnd leads the league in total isolation points 🔥
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 30, 2023
The injury is a tough blow to the Kings, regardless of the severity. He is undoubtedly their most important player alongside Domantas Sabonis, and was already on a hot streak to start the season. Fox is particularly dominant in the 4th quarter as he easily won Clutch Player of the Year in 2022-23, and he has showed his hot hand late in games in the team’s previous two contests.
It is unclear how much time Fox will miss, but he was at least able to play during the tough three-game stretch to begin the year. He will likely be out for Wednesday’s game against the Warriors, and then the Kings will spend the weekend in Houston while playing two games against the Rockets. The team will enjoy a three-game home stretch starting on November 8th.
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