De’Aaron Fox Cleared to Play in Rising Stars Game

by Matt George – Sports 1140 KHTK Reporter

Sacramento Kings rookie point guard De’Aaron Fox was added to the NBA Rising Stars game late Wednesday morning, replacing the injured Los Angeles Lakers rookie guard Lonzo Ball. Later that night, in the closing seconds of the Kings’ 100-91 loss to the Houston Rockets, Fox took a nasty blow to the side of the head from a fall, leaving him bloodied and a bit dazed. Immediately removed from the game, Fox spent a significant amount of time going through concussion protocol and tests. Many feared that he wouldn’t be able to compete in Friday’s All-Star festivities.

De'Aaron Fox exits the game after hitting his head on the court pic.twitter.com/pWTVWpYxGZ

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) February 15, 2018

Some welcome news though late this morning; despite needing multiple stitches, Fox has been medically cleared to play tomorrow.

Fox is averaging 11.3 points, 4.3 assists, and a steal in 27 minutes this season. After being initially left off the Rising Stars roster, and after recently turning 20, Fox has enjoyed his best stretch of play since the start of 2018. He averaged 14 points and 5 assists in 14 games in January, and has continued with an average of 13 points and 5 assists in 7 games this month.

Fox will join his teammates Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic in the Rising Stars game, although he will be competing against them as part of the U.S Team. For the Sacramento Kings, this is the first time in their franchise history that they will have three participants in the event.

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