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De'Aaron Fox and the Sacramento Kings were almost close to taking a commanding 3-1 lead against the defending champions, the Golden State Warriors.
In a pivotal Game 5 at Sacramento's Golden 1 Center, The Athletic's Shams Charania tweeted an update that De'Aron Fox plans to suit up and lead his team to a crucial home victory even while tending to a fractured left index finger.
This is encouraging news for the Sacramento Kings as they plan to bring back momentum in their favor after starting the series with a 2-0 lead and evidently failing to win one game on the road as the Warriors tied the series at 2-2.
The Athletic's Sam Amick tweeted a video of De'Aaron Fox putting up some shots as he tries to get used to wearing a splint on his fractured finger.
De'Aaron Fox duels Steph Curry in Game 4
The atmosphere in Game 4 at Golden State's Chase Center was buzzing as they were treated to an all-time duel between Kings' De'Aaron Fox and Warriors' Steph Curry.
De'Aaron Fox started off slow when Draymond Green was guarding and hounding him, but soon after started to get a feel for the game and exploded for 38 points on 45.2% shooting, including 36.4% from three-point range, nine rebounds, five assists and one steal.
Fox had a crowd-silencer moment late in the fourth when he pulled up from three-point land and drilled a clutch bucket over the outstretched arms of Draymond Green. It was a classic "great offense beats great defense" for the Kings' point guard as the Warriors' lead was down to 1.
Steph Curry was no slouch as well, with 32 points on 50.0% shooting, including 45.5% from three-point range, five rebounds, four assists and one steal. Curry's production has been incredible the past two games as he has played with a sense of urgency to even the odds of the series at 2-2.
Kings' coach Mike Brown on final play
The outcome of the game came down to the final possession with Kings' ball. When De'Aaron Fox was doubled at half-court, he immediately gave the ball up to Harrison Barnes, who was wide open at the time. Unfortunately, he ended up missing the shot as the Warriors escaped with a close victory.
Kings' coach Mike Brown spoke after the team's practice last Tuesday to give his insights on what happened during the team's final play in regulation.
"The reason why I didn’t (regret the decision), and I don’t, especially after watching the film, I don’t know if you guys recall how bad we were in transition in the fourth quarter," Brown said. "Not just missing shots at the rim — taking crazy shots at the rim. So that was one thing that went through my mind."
