Is Fox on track? (moved from the Optimism thread)

#1
Fox is in year 3. This is when he should start coming into his own as a point guard. He’s ahead of schedule.

Marvin is oozing with potential - and still very raw. By the end of next year - he will be a beast. He and Richaun could be a front court that other teams fear - the wrecking crew.

Buddy is going to make shots and Barnes is pretty steady. There is a lot to like going forward.
how is Fox ahead of schedule
 
#3
He's not. He's probably about where he should be considering he came into the league skinny and not being able to shoot.

Good as he can be at times (for portions of games), he's still inconsistent. I'd venture to say that for the majority of games he doesn't leave an imprint on the game. I'm not sure he's fully comfortable being "the guy" and the leader of the team.

Many talk about him as if he is already a star which is ridiculous. He's not even close yet to being a star because star players bring it every night. Others talk about him as if it's a foregone conclusion that he will be a star. I'd put odds at better than 50% that he will be but Fox turning into a star is certainly not a given. If it doesn't happen it's most likely because it's just not in his personality.

Everybody better hope he does turn into a star because this organization is screwed if he doesn't.
 

SLAB

Hall of Famer
#4
Was “Imprint Guy” actually right? Because I’m starting to think he may have been. I know De’Fox has been hurt (and I haven’t watched much lately) but it doesn’t appear he’s taken any sort of leap from year 2 —> 3. Slightly disheartening.
 
#5
Was “Imprint Guy” actually right? Because I’m starting to think he may have been. I know De’Fox has been hurt (and I haven’t watched much lately) but it doesn’t appear he’s taken any sort of leap from year 2 —> 3. Slightly disheartening.
Slowing the pace takes away the highlights that make you sit up and pay attention to Fox. He’s just not that impressive in the half court at this point. He seems much more passive this year. I’m not sure if by design but feels like half of their sets have him dumping the ball off to buddy when he crosses half court and then buddy initiates the offense with Fox off ball.
 
#6
Slowing the pace takes away the highlights that make you sit up and pay attention to Fox. He’s just not that impressive in the half court at this point. He seems much more passive this year. I’m not sure if by design but feels like half of their sets have him dumping the ball off to buddy when he crosses half court and then buddy initiates the offense with Fox off ball.
Hard to run half court offense as a PG when you can't shoot. We saw this early in the season. Teams would just go under the screen and Fox would just drive almost every time. When he took and make midrange pullups he was unstoppable and it opened things up for the rest of the team as well.

That's what I think Buddy is not getting enough credit for. Look at the attention teams give anytime he comes off a screen. (When) he's able to successfully read the double and pass out of it we're getting wide open 3s (but bricking them the last 5+ games) or Holmes is getting easy lanes to roll. Problem is Buddy is obviously neither the best ball handler or passer. But that's what defenses are doing.
 

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#7
in the limited time that I have seen him play when he isn't injured, I don't see a different player from last year. Still early because there is plenty of season left to play but nonetheless, maybe the jump will come in another season or two.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#11
A man among boys? That’s some good old Kings fan hyperbole right there. Right now he’s an above average PG who flashes star potential from time to time.
Not hyperbole at all. All you have to do is watch the game. No defender can stay close to him. That isn't hyperbole. It's just fact. When you can create your own space as an NBA player the NBA world is your oyster.
 

SLAB

Hall of Famer
#12
Not hyperbole at all. All you have to do is watch the game. No defender can stay close to him. That isn't hyperbole. It's just fact. When you can create your own space as an NBA player the NBA world is your oyster.
Then why isn’t he a completely unstoppable force and a breakout star right now? Dude isn’t even an All-Star yet, and really it’s not even that close. Not to say he can’t get there, I like the upside, but he’s not there.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#13
Then why isn’t he a completely unstoppable force and a breakout star? Dude isn’t even an All-Star yet, and really it’s not even that close. Not to say he can’t get there, I like the upside, but he’s not there.
Dude is going to be an All Star and is much closer than you think. It's an observation of the obvious that he isn't there yet.
 

SLAB

Hall of Famer
#14
Dude is going to be an All Star and is much closer than you think. It's an observation of the obvious that he isn't there yet.
Serious question; if no defender can stay close to him and he can get whatever he wants on the court... why doesn’t he? Is it just a mental block? Bad coaching? Not an alpha player? Bad teammates?



And I’m not bashing Fox here. I’m not. I like Fox a lot. But I’m not seeing him in “guaranteed to be a star” light as much anymore.
 
#15
Dude is going to be an All Star and is much closer than you think. It's an observation of the obvious that he isn't there yet.
Yeah but you said he's a man among boys which would indicate that he's already there. If either were true he'd be dominating games. Right now he only dominates in small stretches of select games.

What you think/hope that he turns into isn't reality yet.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#16
Yeah but you said he's a man among boys which would indicate that he's already there. If either were true he'd be dominating games. Right now he only dominates in small stretches of select games.

What you think/hope that he turns into isn't reality yet.
Where is "there" exactly? Is "there" having five consecutive NBA All Star Berths? Of course not. If that's your definition of "there" then read some NBA history books to figure it all out for the next five years. Why not trade Fox and Bagley for Iguadola, Joe Johnson, Pau Gasol and Vince Carter? Their resumes are fan-tastic. You would have guys with multiple All Star berths, future HOFers.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#17
Serious question; if no defender can stay close to him and he can get whatever he wants on the court... why doesn’t he? Is it just a mental block? Bad coaching? Not an alpha player? Bad teammates?



And I’m not bashing Fox here. I’m not. I like Fox a lot. But I’m not seeing him in “guaranteed to be a star” light as much anymore.
When did "anymore" occur? This year? Before the injuries? After the injuries? After he turned 22 years old? When exactly?
 
#18
Where is "there" exactly? Is "there" having five consecutive NBA All Star Berths? Of course not. If that's your definition of "there" then read some NBA history books to figure it all out for the next five years. Why not trade Fox and Bagley for Iguadola, Joe Johnson, Pau Gasol and Vince Carter? Their resumes are fan-tastic. You would have guys with multiple All Star berths, future HOFers.
That's just being ridiculous and not at all answering my question.

He's averaging 17/6.5
Those are not all-star numbers and really not that close.

If he was as good now as you think he is, the numbers would be higher and the Kings would be winning more games.

I never understand this delusional overrating of our own players. Logically it doesn't make sense because you better hope Fox improves quite a bit (because the wins will come with it). Trying to pretend like he's already a star and big leader of the team is fools gold. He's not. Yes he can be, yes he probably will be......but he's got a ways to go.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#19
That's just being ridiculous and not at all answering my question.

He's averaging 17/6.5
Those are not all-star numbers and really not that close.

If he was as good now as you think he is, the numbers would be higher and the Kings would be winning more games.

I never understand this delusional overrating of our own players. Logically it doesn't make sense because you better hope Fox improves quite a bit (because the wins will come with it). Trying to pretend like he's already a star and big leader of the team is fools gold. He's not. Yes he can be, yes he probably will be......but he's got a ways to go.
Have you been out of the country? You might check to see how many games Fox has played this year. Then we'll talk.
 

Mr. S£im Citrus

Doryphore of KingsFans.com
Staff member
#20
Serious question; if no defender can stay close to him and he can get whatever he wants on the court... why doesn’t he? Is it just a mental block? Bad coaching? Not an alpha player? Bad teammates?



And I’m not bashing Fox here. I’m not. I like Fox a lot. But I’m not seeing him in “guaranteed to be a star” light as much anymore.
Fox's closest comp is probably John Wall. It took Wall four seasons before he broke out to have an All-Star campaign, and Fox is further ahead in his development than Wall was at that point in his career. Now, Fox is not going to sniff the All-Star game this season, because the western conference is flush with elite guards, but he certainly seems to be moving in the right direction.
 
#21
Have you been out of the country? You might check to see how many games Fox has played this year. Then we'll talk.
Is he not averaging 17/6.5 in the games he plays? Are they not losing almost all the games he plays?

All you have is excuses and what ifs. You want me to live in your pretend world but the reality of how Fox is playing this year or even the second half of last year.......don't align with your fantasy.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#22
Is he not averaging 17/6.5 in the games he plays? Are they not losing almost all the games he plays?

All you have is excuses and what ifs. You want me to live in your pretend world but the reality of how Fox is playing this year or even the second half of last year.......don't align with your fantasy.
All you have is not seeing past the nose on your face. Time will tell.
 
#23
Serious question; if no defender can stay close to him and he can get whatever he wants on the court... why doesn’t he? Is it just a mental block? Bad coaching? Not an alpha player? Bad teammates?



And I’m not bashing Fox here. I’m not. I like Fox a lot. But I’m not seeing him in “guaranteed to be a star” light as much anymore.
He's just too passive. He doesn't have the killer mentality yet, I don't know if he'll ever have it.
 
#28
That's just being ridiculous and not at all answering my question.

He's averaging 17/6.5
Those are not all-star numbers and really not that close.

I never understand this delusional overrating of our own players. Logically it doesn't make sense because you better hope Fox improves quite a bit (because the wins will come with it). Trying to pretend like he's already a star and big leader of the team is fools gold. He's not. Yes he can be, yes he probably will be......but he's got a ways to go.
Kings fans are just like pretty much every other fan base in every sport. They tend to over-value their own players.
 
#29
Let's look at the bright side.

Since Fox hasn't become the Alpha Dawg we expected of him yet, we should be able to re-sign him to an extension this summer, that will be less than the Max contract.

The Kings should be able to re-sign him to contract a bit above what we paid Buddy. Saving us cap space and a Max contract slot for hopefully someone we draft this year that truly develops into an Alpha Dawg.
 
#30
I still have hope that Fox will turn into a star but my hope has dwindled a little from last year. It's probably partially due to the fact that the team is just so miserable right now. But as others have said, I don't see a big step up in play from last year. He seems to be pretty much at the same point. His lack of alpha dog mentality is concerning.

It's funny that "imprint guy" who was constantly bashed in game threads last year might not be totally off. I can't even remember which user that was, but if Fox doesn't pan out as well as we all hope, imprint guy is gonna be sitting in his living room with a giant cigar going "hehehehe".