One of the NBA’s most prominent stars has spoken up in defense of De’Aaron Fox’s exclusion from the NBA All-Star Game.
Speaking to reporters during All-Star Weekend, Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker shared that there is a Kentucky player missing from seven that will feature on the All-Star Game squads.
And there shouldn’t be a surprise to Booker’s analysis.
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“How many of us is it?" Booker asked reporters. “Six? Seven? [It] should be eight. De’Aaron should be here too.”
Despite the Kings being a playoff-contending team all season long, Team West All-Stars will not feature a single Sacramento player after Fox and Domantas Sabonis were left off the starters and reserve lists altogether.
Categorized by many as a “snub,” Fox headed into the All-Star break averaging 26.8 points from the floor while adding 5.5 assists and 4.1 rebounds, leading Sacramento – alongside Sabonis – to 31 wins and the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference standings.
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But to Booker, Fox’s output in the NBA shouldn’t come as a surprise, as it’s just a result of having Kentucky basketball in one’s DNA.
“It just speaks for itself,” Booker added. “I know [John Calipari] is telling his team right now, ‘You guys see what it takes.’
“Everybody has walked that through Lexington and made it work. It’s a players-first organization. They want to see you win. They want to see you succeed. And they want you out in one year.”
Fox, who led the Kings to their first playoff appearance in 16 years last season, will have to wait another season to add another All-Star appearance under his belt.
However, one thing is for certain: the lists of NBA stars who feel Fox should be an All-Star continues to grow.