On Friday, De'Aaron Fox is set to make his return to Sacramento for the first time since he was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in early February. Given that Fox helped end the Sacramento Kings' 16-year playoff drought, there should be a lot of admiration and respect between the two parties. However, the relationship is a little bit tainted because of how things ended.
After seven and a half years with the Kings, Fox decided he no longer wanted to be there and requested a trade – even requesting a specific team he'd like to be traded to (the Spurs). To make matters worse, he even unfollowed his trusty pick-and-roll partner (Domantas Sabonis) on Instagram after being moved.
It's sad to see a relationship that was once so beautiful end the way it has. But on the flip side, bad breakups make for great reunion games. Unfortunately, it seems like this one may be losing some luster because of injuries.
Injuries are killing the vibe of Fox's return to Sacramento
The obvious one is that the Spurs will be without their prodigious big man, Victor Wembanyama, for the rest of the season. And, of course, the rest of the season includes this game. On the season, the Spurs go from a team that is +3 per 100 possessions in Wembanyama's minutes to -7.9 per 100 without him. So, they will be at a massive disadvantage.
But we already knew that. Unfortunately, today, we were met with more bad news. As we mentioned on Monday, Sabonis will be out until at least early next week after straining his hamstring against the Houston Rockets. So, Fox's frenemy will not be on the court for this game.
Now, his college roommate will also be missing in action, as it was announced today that Malik Monk will miss tomorrow's game with a right toe sprain.
MRI imaging confirms Malik Monk has a right toe sprain and will miss tomorrow’s game against the San Antonio Spurs. He’ll be listed as day-to-day going forward.
— Tristi Rodriguez (@tristi_r14) March 7, 2025
No Malik and no Domantas Sabonis for De’Aaron Fox’s return to Sacramento. pic.twitter.com/M4GYrUs2Xh
By that math, three of the six best players on these two teams will not be available for this game. On top of that, the two players on the Kings that Fox has the most history with are included in that injury report.
Regardless of how short-handed they are, the Kings will have to find a way to win this game. One, because they need to keep pace in the grueling Western Conference (and a sixth seed is not out of the question). And second, despite how anti-climatic it may be now, it would be nice to take it to their old franchise point guard.