Fox, Sabonis ready for Playoff push after All-Star appearance

For the first time in over 18 years, two members of the Sacramento Kings took the floor during an NBA All-Star Game as De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis went head-to-head on Sunday night in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The duo was split up as Fox was selected by LeBron James and Sabonis by Giannis Antetokounmpo during the pregame draft, meaning that only one of Sacramento’s one-two punch would come away victorious.

Sabonis and a loaded Team Giannis came away with a 184-175 win in front of a sold-out Vivint Arena to put the finishing touches on an action-packed weekend that included the participation of four Kings starters (Keegan Murray in the Rising Stars Game and Kevin Huerter in the 3-Point Contest).

Fox and Sabonis had quiet performances in the game, but the fact that they became the first pair of Kings teammates to lace up for an All-Star Game together since Peja Stojakovic and Brad Miller did so in 2004 is a great accomplishment for the organization as they hope to turn the page on 16 seasons of misery.

🫂 pic.twitter.com/iCdBmTK9UI

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) February 20, 2023

 

Of the 54 assists handed out during the first half, none of them were on a basket scored by De’Aaron Fox, as the speedy guard was the lone player on an All-Star roster that hadn’t scored as play entered the third quarter.

Fox’s teammates on Team LeBron often took the ball for themselves during a brief five-minute stint during the first half that saw the Kings’ leader on the floor, as players like Kyrie Irving (18 points), Joel Embiid (15 points), and LeBron James (13 points) all got plenty of scoring opportunities during the first two quarters.

The second half turned into the Jayson Tatum vs. Jaylen Brown show, with the Boston Celtics teammates trading buckets during the third quarter in what was the most exciting stretch of play. Tatum finished the night with 55 points (All-Star Game record) on 21-of-31 shooting from the field to secure MVP honors and a win for Team Giannis, while Brown added a team-high 35 points for Team LeBron.

Fox told the media on Saturday that he hoped he wouldn’t play much on Sunday in reference to managing his workload, and he got his wish as the first-time All-Star logged nine minutes (second-least of any participant) while missing his only field goal attempt–a missed dunk.

While Fox was able to hand out two assists, he was the only player that finished the game without a point–but that isn’t something that he was hanging his head over postgame.

“I didn’t expect to make an impact,” Fox said of his role in Sunday’s game. “I was just trying to get a point, and sometimes you miss.”

The 25-year-old dished out two assists and missed the only shot that he took–one that came on an attempt at the rim.

Fox said he got caught up on dunking the basketball or laying it in while in the air, but added that he was “cool” ending the game without a score. To a player like Fox, who has been in the NBA for six seasons, the experience of All-Star Weekend was his biggest takeaway.

This is a reminder that @swipathefox played QB before. pic.twitter.com/mTASru2zTi

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) February 20, 2023

“It was cool to go through the experience,” Fox said of his first All-Star game. “I had a lot of friends that were able to watch, and it was a really big moment for me. I think the next big moment for me when we’re hopefully and we’re in the playoffs playing on [national] TV, and I feel like that will be a bigger moment for me.”

Sabonis, who was playing in his third All-Star game, finished the game with six points on three-of-four shooting, four rebounds during 12 minutes of playing time.

The 26-year-old highlighted how great it was to have two members of the Kings franchise in the game as Sacramento continues to turn heads around the NBA.

“It’s great. It’s always great to have another teammate there to represent the team, the city, everything,” Sabonis said of playing in the All-Star Game with his teammate. “All of Sacramento was probably watching. The fans that come and support us every night, they’re excited. I saw a lot of fans over this weekend that traveled to see us. I feel like it means a lot to the city.”

Fox and Sabonis both said postgame that they’re already thinking about Thursday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers with the Kings set to begin an important playoff push.

“As soon as the game was over, as soon as I checked out,” Fox said when asked when he turned his attention towards the playoff race. “It’s a quick turnaround for me. I’m heading back to [Sacramento] tonight. I’m ready to be gearing up for the last part of the season.”

Next Game

The playoff push begins on Thursday night at Golden 1 Center.

Sacramento will face the Portland Trail Blazers in an important matchup between two Western Conference playoff hopefuls as the Kings will look to even the season series at one game apiece.

Be sure to get all of your Kings vs. Blazers action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 with pregame coverage beginning at 5:30 PM PST on Game Night with Scott Marsh and Henry ‘The High Flyer’ Turner.

Upcoming Sacramento Kings Schedule

Thursday, February 23rd – Sacramento Kings vs. Portland Trail Blazers – 7:00 PM PST

Friday, February 24th – Sacramento Kings @ Los Angeles Clippers – 7:30 PM PST

Sunday, February 26th – Sacramento Kings @ Oklahoma City Thunder – 4:00 PM PST

Tuesday, February 28th – Sacramento Kings @ Oklahoma City Thunder – 5:00 PM PST

Friday, March 3rd – Sacramento Kings vs. Los Angeles Clippers – 7:00 PM PST

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Frankie Cartoscelli is the Kings’ beat reporter for SactownSports.com. Follow Frankie on Twitter.

Follow @FCartoscelli3

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