The San Antonio Spurs announced Thursday that guard De’Aaron Fox will undergo season-ending surgery on his left pinkie. Fox has extensor tendon damage in the finger that was sustained during training camp in October when he was with the Sacramento Kings, but he played through it the entire season. The surgery is scheduled for Tuesday in Los Angeles, the team said.
The timing of the surgery was intentional to allow Fox enough time to recover over the summer and have time to build chemistry with his new teammates before next season starts, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. Fox is expected to be ready for the start of next season.
With 18 games left this season and San Antonio (27-37) far outside the play-in picture, it makes the decision to shut down Fox easier, especially after Spurs star Victor Wembanyama was ruled out for the rest of the season back in late February due to a blood clot.
Fox was traded from the Kings to San Antonio ahead of the trade deadline in February with the intention of starring alongside Wembanyama for the future. However, Fox and Wembanyama only managed to play five games together, and now with both of them sidelined for the rest of the season we’ll have to wait until next season to see how they mesh over a longer span of time. On paper, it should be an exciting partnership, as the duo averaged 57 points together during the span, which ranks as the second-highest scoring duo on the Spurs roster this season.
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Jack Maloney
That’s not a difficult bar to pass as the Spurs have been searching for another scoring star to place next to Wembanyama. Fox accomplishes that goal. He’s the ideal point guard to pair with Wemby, capable of getting him the ball in the spots the 7-foot-3 Frenchman wants, and being a shot creator to take the pressure off Wembanyama as well. He’s also been among the most clutch players in the league over the past couple of years, winning Clutch Player of the Year during the 2022-23 season. In 62 games for the Spurs and Kings, Fox had averages of 23.5 points, 6.3 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game.
While this season won’t pan out as well as the Spurs originally imagined, the future is bright with a fully healthy Fox and Wembanyama next season. Couple that with emerging guard Stephon Castle, who is in the running for Rookie of the Year as the season winds down, as well as a few other promising role players, and San Antonio should be a competitive team next season.
