With just over a week left before the NBA’s trade deadline, multiple teams are considering making a blockbuster move due to contract disputes. Jimmy Butler‘s situation with the Miami Heat is the most discussed, perhaps because drama that’s made for TV. For months, Brandon Ingram has been on the New Orleans Pelicans’ trade block. Now, Sacramento Kings star De’Aaron Fox looks like he could be on the move.
In fact, the way that the situation’s been described, he already has a destination in mind: the San Antonio Spurs.
De’Aaron Fox-Spurs Trade Rumors Given More Life
There are sure to be other teams in consideration, namely the Houston Rockets. Given Fox’s desire to play for a winning team, their rapid development may have caught his eye. However, the Rockets are willing to see what they have with their exciting young core. Indeed, the best way to summarize Rockets general Rafael Stone’s thinking at this juncture is ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’
With that in mind, it really does appear as if Fox would prefer to play for the Spurs. On top of what had been initially reported, L’EQUIPE insider Maxime Aubin relays that “(he) and his family have already been working behind the scenes in recent months to prepare for the player’s arrival… It is now up to the negotiations between (the Spurs and the Kings) to succeed.”
According to a reliable source in San Antonio, De’Aaron Fox and his family have already been working behind the scenes in recent months to prepare for the player’s arrival with the Spurs. It is now up to the negotiations between the 2 franchises to succeed.
— Maxime Aubin (@MaximeAubin1) January 28, 2025
Thus, the stage is set and a plan is already in motion.
All But Inevitable
Even if Sacramento doesn’t want to trade the dynamic guard, they’re well aware that his contract expires in 2026. If Fox is set on leaving, there’s really only one option to ensure that they don’t lose him for nothing. Consequently, they have a finite amount of time –about 16 months –to make a move. However, his trade value might be as high as it’ll ever be. As a result, the Kings should be motivated to deal him sooner rather than later.
It doesn’t have to be to San Antonio though. In fact, outside of sign-and-trades, most players don’t end up where they really want to go.
Yet, as Fox will be a free agent in 2026, there’s no sense in a team giving away precious assets for a player that won’t commit to them long-term. That is, unless the franchise that acquired him thought they would win a championship in the short time that he was there. Looking around the league, the Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns might be teams who’d genuinely believe that.
