NBA Season Preview 2018-19: Finishing better could make a world of difference for De’Aaron Fox

De’Aaron Fox is one of a number of Sacramento Kings players with the potential that far outpaces their production. If one or two of these players can take a leap and manifest that potential, the fortunes of the franchise could rapidly be altered.

Fox’s rookie season was, to some degree, a disappointment. He looked very much a rookie, which is fine but stood in stark contrast to Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum. Woeful shooting efficiency dragged down his overall impact and while his shaky jumper received most of the attention, his inconsistency finishing around the basket is probably a much more pressing concern.

According to Cleaning the Glass, Fox ranked in the 67th percentile among point guards in field goal percentage within four feet of the basket. However, he was in just the 39th percentile on shots between four feet and the free throw line and he was 57th in field goal percentage on drives among the 60 players who averaged at least 8.0 drives per game last season.

A combination of factors led to Fox’s inefficiency around the basket but his shaky right hand (Fox is left-handed) was one of the major issues.

Here, Fox uses a nifty step-through to drive to the right side of the basket for a layup. But, at the last moment, he inexplicably switches the ball back to his left hand, bringing it closer to the shot-blocked and allowing it to be swatted away.

Here’s another example of Fox getting all the way to the basket with his right hand but attempting to finish with his left instead of his right, bringing the ball into the orbit of a defender who blocks the shot.

Although it’s difficult to discern in a relatively small sample of a single season, Fox’s shot chart reveals some traces of his difficulty finishing from the right side of the basket.

From the left, he as at least been able to utilize his floater a bit or displayed touch gliding in from just outside the restricted area. That relative strength, however, is doing a bit of compensating for his weakness.

Fox is long for a point guard and his some vertical pop, but he’s far more slithery than explosive in the air, more covering ground than rising with strength. Combined with his lack of upper body strength and questionable touch, he often finds himself gliding into contact, which throws off his balance or just working himself into difficult angles where he can’t finish.

Here, he gets to his left hand but launches off his back foot, well outside the restricted area, and can’t get the lift or explosion to finish through or over the body of the defender.

Here’s another example of a physical rim protector knocking him just enough off balance to miss what should be a relatively simple left-handed layup.

All of a player’s offensive skills are linked, at least with regards to how a defense responds. As Fox becomes a better finisher, his drives are more threatening, drawing more interior defensive attention and opening more space for him to find rolling bigs or kick it out to the perimeter for open shooters. Teams already play him for the drive but once he makes clear that this is a viable weapon for him, he’ll have even more space to work on his pull-up shooting.

The Kings will need plenty of these little developmental arcs to break their way — Fox’s finishing, Hield’s off-the-dribble game, Skal’s face-up game, Bagley’s outside shot — to really become the team they’d like to be. However, improved finishing for Fox seems like one of the most easily attainable and is definitely something to watch for the Kings as the season unfolds.