Kings coach Luke Walton hailed 'free safety' De'Aaron Fox after the point guard scored 10 of his 27 points in the final five minutes and swiped five steals to complete Sacramento’s comeback win against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Fox finally got the Kings running at the quick pace he grew accustomed to last season scoring 10 of his 27 points in the final five minutes and the Kings overcame a 20-point first-half deficit to beat the Grizzlies 128-123 on Thursday night, ending an eight-game losing streak.
He also swiped a season-high five steals to help the Kings' rally.
"You go down 20 in the first quarter, it is easy to give in," Walton said. "That is the easier thing to do, and our guys kept scrapping and fighting, scrapping and fighting. They pulled out a hard-fought, gritty win. That is kind of who our group is."
It's a group that has not had much success defensively this season while Fox has been in and out of the line-up.
Fox made an immediate impact against Memphis, coming from behind to block a shot by Jaren Jackson Jr after the Grizzlies grabbed the opening tip. Fox also had a midcourt steal and lay-up as part of a run in the fourth quarter when the Kings turned a two-point deficit into an eight-point lead.
"I feel like I am one of the best guys in the league that can actually go for those type of gambles," Fox said of his early block. "I came up and I made a lot of plays defensively tonight. Sometimes you have to be able to take those risks and be able to make plays defensively."
Walton compared Fox to an NFL free safety.
"He is so quick and he reads things so well that when he is really engaged and he is coming over making helps, he just gets to places so quick and he is so explosive," Walton said. "It gets us out and running."
Buddy Hield had 26 points and seven rebounds to help the Kings win for the first time since beating Golden State on December 15. Richaun Holmes added 18 points and seven rebounds, and Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 16 points.
The Kings allowed 42 points in the first quarter and 37 in the third but held the Grizzlies to 13 through the first 10 minutes of the fourth quarter, one of the best defensive stretches of the season by Walton's team.
Sacramento took control with a 14-4 run after trailing 106-104 with 5:11 to go. It was the Kings' largest comeback of the season.
"We have got to learn how to play with a big lead like that, especially early in the game," Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said. "We have got to know that when a team is down 20, that all those things that we made an emphasis of in the first quarter, you have to take it to another level. It kind of just slipped on us."
Ja Morant, the Western Conference rookie of the month for December, had 23 points and seven assists for Memphis. Jonas Valanciunas added 18 points and 12 rebounds.