According to Sacramento Kings Head Coach Luke Walton, starting point guard De’Aaron Fox and starting forward Harrison Barnes will not play in another game this season, joining star rookie Tyrese Haliburton as officially labeled as out for the year.
De'Aaron Fox and Harrison Barnes will not play again this season, per Luke Walton.
— Jason Anderson (@JandersonSacBee) May 14, 2021
The move to sit both Fox and Barnes should come as no surprise, as the Kings were officially eliminated from play-in contention on Thursday evening against the Memphis Grizzlies, making the last two regular season games essentially meaningless. Prior to missing the last 11 games due to COVID-19, Fox was enjoying a career-year, averaging 25.2 points and 7.2 assists on the season. He’s the first player in the Sacramento era to put up those kind of numbers, while also being only one of four players in NBA history average at least 25 and 7 without making the All-Star Game.
While Harrison Barnes was not putting up fringe All-Star numbers, he was still playing some of his best basketball while wearing a Kings uniform. Sacramento’s starting wing vacillated between both forward spots, showing great versatility on both ends of the floor, while also averaging 16.1 points, 6.6 boards, and 3.5 assists, along with 39% shooting from deep.
With Fox and Barnes both out for the season, and with an emphasis likely being put on inexperienced players and lottery positioning, expect to see a lot of Kyle Guy, Terence Davis, Louis King, Justin James, and Chimezie Metu in place of Sacramento’s veteran leaders.
First!
Uh………last?
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