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De’Aaron Fox will remain in Sacramento for the foreseeable future. On Friday night, the third-year guard agreed to a five-year maximum extension of $ 163 million with the Kings, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. The deal, which will go into effect after next season and keep Fox in Sacramento until 2026, has a clause that it could potentially reach $ 195 million.
Fox’s signing of this extension was widely anticipated as the offseason approached, and both sides made sure to get to business early. With Bogdan Bogdanovic’s trade never coming to fruition, this is the first major move for Monte McNair, who took over as Kings general manager in September.
The No.5 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, Fox has just had a career year in which he averaged 21.1 points, 6.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He was even better on the Kings’ short-lived bubble trip over the summer and established himself as the face of the franchise.
As McNair and this new front office determine where to go from here with this young Kings team, it’s clear Fox will be at the center of their plans. Based on his quotes during his introductory press conference, McNair has indicated that he wants the Kings to be an exciting and dynamic club.
“I think De’Aaron is definitely a great young talent,” McNair said. “And I think his ability to create offensively in speed is really going to be a huge catalyst for the way the coach [Luke] Walton and I imagine this team speeding up, creating space to shoot 3s and attack the rim. “
Who better than Fox to lead this kind of attack? He’s one of the fastest players in the league, and despite the Kings not really playing that fast last season, he still finished with 5.4 transition points per game, which was good for eight in the league. His ability to pick up the pace can create a lot of easy opportunities for him and his teammates.
While he still has plenty of room to develop, especially in terms of shooting – 29.2% against 3 points last season – it’s a well-deserved honor for Fox. He’s one of the best young playmakers in the league and it’s a joy to watch. His challenge now will be to lead the Kings to the playoffs, somewhere they haven’t been since 2006.
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