As the NBA trade deadline inches forward (Feb. 6), 27-year-old former All-Star De’Aaron Fox is grabbing massive interest around the league. Fox has been a force for the Sacramento Kings for several years and might find a new home soon.
The Kings continue to navigate a flurry of interest for the NBA star point guard. One league source indicated that more than half the teams in the NBA have inquired about Fox, and Fox’s eight-year tenure with the Kings may soon be over.
The San Antonio Spurs have created the most buzz about Fox, and they are reportedly trying to make him Victor Wembanyama’s co-star within the next week. The Kings and Spurs have mutual interest, but how can they close this deal?
De’Aaron Fox to the Spurs?
Fox was drafted by the Kings fifth overall in the 2017 NBA Draft and is ranked 13th in scoring this season (25.1 points per game). He has logged a 46.8% field goal percentage while recording 6.2 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game this season.
The Spurs are 21-24 this season and 12th in the Western Conference, and they are looking for another piece to help them climb the standings. Help could be on the way, though. This week, news broke that the Sacramento Kings may move Fox. And apparently, there’s mutual interest between the star and San Antonio.
According to ESPN’s senior NBA insider Shams Charania, the San Antonio Spurs are believed to be atop of Fox’s preferred landing spots if the Kings decide to trade him.
Reporting for NBA Countdown — on the dozens of calls and offers into the Sacramento Kings for All-Star De'Aaron Fox: pic.twitter.com/ysHQFVNbX0
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 30, 2025
A big factor in getting this deal done could be rookie guard Stephon Castle. Will the Spurs part ways with their 2024 fourth-overall pick to get this deal done? The Kings are known to covet the Spurs’ rookie guard, but league circles are skeptical that San Antonio would be willing to include him. Castle has produced 12.1 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game this season.
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Veteran point guard Chris Paul, who signed a one-year deal worth $11 million to join the Spurs in July 2024, can be included in the trade. Paul has been a driving force in the team’s rebuilding progress. But will the Spurs add Paul to the deal to acquire a younger point guard?
For the Spurs’ purposes, it would be easier to integrate Fox in the summer while letting the 39-year-old Paul finish this productive season. Fox, who turned down multiple extension offers from the Kings leading up to this point, has one season left on his contract ($37 million).
While the Kings reportedly want “win-now players” in a trade for Fox, the Spurs could help them build for the future by trading some of their draft picks. They have 12 first-rounders over the next seven years at their disposal. San Antonio also possesses a handful of talented young players that it would likely be willing to send to Sacramento.
The Kings have a record of 24-23 and are 10th in the Western Conference. They lost to Philadelphia on Wednesday, Jan. 29, falling 117-104 to a Sixers team that was without Joel Embiid and Paul George, but Sacramento had won 11 of the previous 15 games under interim coach Doug Christie.
