San Antonio — San Antonio Spurs point guard De’Aaron Fox Is finally back.
Fox was patient in his impatience, eager to get his season started but realized he could not rush his return from a hamstring injury. His teammates were not always so patient.
San Antonio Guard, “We’ve really been waiting for Fox to come back all summer.” stephen castle Said. “It’s great to have him back on the court. Obviously, you see how helpful he is for us offensively. It only grows from here.”
Returns were better than expected.
Acknowledging that there was some rust, Fox still calmly drained a 10-foot, floating jumper with 29 seconds remaining, sealing the 126-119 win. New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night. Fox led the Spurs with 24 points on 9-for-14 shooting in his first game since March 12.
“I mean, I’m good at basketball,” Fox said with a smile when asked about that final shot. “So, you can still rust out and be able to do that.”
That confidence and ability to close games was a major reason why San Antonio acquired the 2023 NBA Clutch Player of the Year and All-Star to join their young roster. San Antonio acquired Fox from Sacramento in a three-team trade with Chicago on February 5 and signed him to a four-year extension on August 5.
“He’s dynamic,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “He’s done that a few times and it’s good to get him back on the court and hopefully we can continue that.”
San Antonio and Fox have waited eight months to begin fully rebuilding an iconic franchise that has missed the playoffs in six straight seasons after 22 consecutive postseason appearances and five NBA championships.
Fox’s season ended on March 12 when he opted to undergo season-ending surgery to repair a torn tendon in his left pinkie. He then suffered a right hamstring injury during the offseason as he prepared for his first full season with the Spurs.
Fox was playing his third five-on-five game since being released from hand surgery when he injured his hamstring. He played full court for the first time two weeks ago.
Fox had never had a hamstring injury before, so he was unsure how long he would be out. Still, it was difficult for him not to return earlier.
“Sure,” said Fox. “For me, as a player and as a competitor, obviously I want to go there. But I’m listening to (the medical staff) and they’re most interested in me because obviously I signed a contract to be here a long time, so they want to protect the asset and make sure the asset is ready when I’m there. So, for me, it was just trusting that, trusting the process, and I think we did that this summer.” And did a very good job in the early parts of the season.”
Returned to the team with Fox Victor Wembanyama Only the sixth time. This was the first time Fox started with Castle.
“He’s one of those Steph Curry guys,” Fox said of Wembanyama. “There aren’t a lot of guys that have that type of seriousness when they don’t have the ball. Vic is one of those guys and he opens it up for everyone else.”
San Antonio responded with eight players in double figures. Wembanyama had 18 points and 18 rebounds, and Cassel had 14 points and 14 assists as the Spurs picked up their second consecutive win after two losses following a franchise-best 5–0 start.
