Kings-Thunder Matchup of the Game: De'Aaron Fox vs Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

The Sacramento Kings will need De'Aaron Fox to be on his A-game against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Will Zimmerle | Feb 1, 2025

Dec 14, 2023; Sacramento, California, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) dribbles against Sacramento Kings guard De'Aaron Fox (right) during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

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The Sacramento Kings (24-23) continue to sit in limbo as the trade deadline approaches, but the season marches forward as they face the Oklahoma City Thunder (37-9) tonight.

Friday came and went, with more trade talk and rumors flying around, but Sacramento's roster remains the same as of Saturday morning, and that means the Kings need to do whatever they can to win games. Against the Thunder, the top team in the West, that likely means a big game, or at least a good game, from De'Aaron Fox.

With the injuries to the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the easy pick for the matchup of the game, meaning that for the second game in a row, Fox is the matchup choice for the Kings even with him being in the center of trade talks.

Season stats:

De'Aaron Fox: 25.1 PTS | 6.2 AST | 5.0 REB | 1.5 STL | 0.5 BLK | 46.8 FG% | 32.1 3P%

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: 32.5 PTS | 6.0 AST | 5.2 REB | 2.0 STL | 1.0 BLK | 52.8 FG% | 35.0 3P%

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having an MVP-caliber season. He's leading the top team in the tough Western Conference and leading the entire league in scoring with his career-high 32.5 points per game.

Gilgeous-Alexander is a master at getting to the rim, shooting 73.1% in the restricted area this season, tied for 20th best in the league with the players ahead of him being predominantly bigs.

He can also stop and pop in the mid-range or feast at the free-throw line. He isn't leading the league in scoring by accident. Even with getting the defense's full attention, he can go for a big game any night. The last time these two teams faced off, he scored 37 points on 20 field goal attempts.

For the Kings, they'll need Fox not only for his offense but to try and slow down SGA as well. While Keegan Murray and Keon Ellis, among others, will likely get time on the talented guard, Fox has shown the ability to be one of the best two-way guards in the game.

The hard part with all of the trade speculation is asking Fox to go out there and be at his best when he can get traded at any second. He seems committed to continue playing for the Kings as long as he's here, and all we can do is hope he gives his full effort when he's on the court.

Against the best of the best in the Thunder, the Kings will need him to be on his A-game tonight.

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