It appears De'Aaron Fox's future with the only NBA franchise he knows has reached a sense of urgency.
Fox's agent, Rich Paul, met with Kings general manager Monte McNair and assistant GM Wes Wilcox on Thursday morning to discuss the star point guard's future in Sacramento, The Athletic's Sam Amick and Anthony Slater reported, citing sources.
While Fox hasn't asked for a trade, league sources told Amick and Slater, rival executives are "monitoring the Fox situation closely," with one team in particular -- the San Antonio Spurs -- positioning itself to pursue Fox to potentially pair with the 7-foot-3 Victor Wembanyama, Amick and Slater reported, citing league sources.
Fox is from nearby Houston.
If a trade becomes the more evident option for Fox and the Kings, other teams around the league surely will show interest, too, Amick and Slater added.
The 27-year-old has spent his eight-year NBA career with the Kings after being selected No. 5 overall in the 2017 draft. His comments on a recent "The Draymond Green Show" episode only re-iterate what he's said over the last several years: He loves the city of Sacramento and its fans, but he also loves winning.
"It has all to do with the team, the organization. Where are we going? I want to make sure that we're in a position to try and win in the future because that's ultimately what I want to do," Fox said on the podcast. "I feel like I'm continuing to get better as a player every year, but for me, it's are we looking like we're continuing to get better year after year? And are we going to be able to compete at a high level? That's all mine is.
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"If we can show that this year, you sign the extension now. Obviously, I still have another year, but that's where my mindset is. I love the city. I love being here. I've raised my family here. I would love to be here, retire here. I mean how many people can say they played in one organization for their whole career? I want to be a part of that select few people. But at the end of the day, I also want to win."
The Kings have failed to do that on a consistent basis this season, falling to the No. 12 seed in the Western Conference with a 13-15 record. Fox declined the Kings' three-year, $165 million contract extension offer before the start of the 2024-25 NBA season to wait and see how Sacramento's season ends.
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The potential of him declining an extension again this summer could force the Kings to consider trading Fox rather than losing him for nothing in free agency in two years.
The trade deadline is Feb. 6, 2025.
