For the last several years, NBA fans and observers have lauded players such as Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, and Jimmy Butler for being perhaps the league’s best crunch-time performers.
But now there is a new addition to that group: Sacramento Kings star De’Aaron Fox.
The All-Star guard had his best season yet this year, averaging 25.0 points on a career-high 51.2 percent shooting and 6.1 assists per game while leading his team to the third seed in the Western Conference.
It culminated in him winning the inaugural Clutch Player of the Year award on Tuesday, and a look at some of his stats reveals why he was the runaway winner of that award.
De’Aaron Fox this season:
— 1st in clutch points
— 52.9 FG% in the clutch
— 1st in 4th quarter buckets
— Most clutch points (194) since 2018 LeBron1st Clutch Player of the Year in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/VBdoHdAwkS
— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 18, 2023
Fox may not have the athleticism or explosiveness of someone such as Ja Morant, nor is he an outstanding outside shooter like Stephen Curry, Irving, or Lillard, but he is simply an excellent all-around player.
He has become the face of a Kings team that has gone from a perennial laughingstock to a rising force in the West.
They led the league in scoring during the regular season with an average of 120.7 points per game, and they have gone up 2-0 in the first round of the playoffs over the defending world champion Golden State Warriors.
In both games, as the Warriors tried to surge and challenge Sacramento down the stretch, Fox responded with bucket after bucket to keep them at bay.
The Kings will now face a big challenge, as the series moves to San Francisco, where Golden State has played rather well all year, but Fox will no doubt be up for that challenge.
NEXT:
Collage Shows The Must-See NBA Journey Of Mike Brown
