Mitch Johnson remains committed to De'Aaron Fox and the role he plays in leading the Spurs as the NBA Finals continue.
Amid criticisms and suggestions of adjustment, Mitch Johnson is still keeping his faith in De'Aaron Fox to perform at a high level.
San Antonio Spurs / Schedule
Approaching Friday's Game 2 of the NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs head coach reiterated his belief in Fox's impact and ability to bounce back after a rough series opener against the New York Knicks, noting that the star point guard's role will never change.
“We're at our best when he's confident in attack mode, and has the basketball in his hands, making his teammates better, and making plays for himself, and I think that role has been pretty consistent," Johnson told reporters.
"I think the thing that's probably changed, obviously, is the teammates around him have continued to grow and improve, and we've added some guys, and he has probably balanced better than anyone on our team being able to be at the forefront and lead the attack at times, then also understand that he can allow someone else to be super aggressive and be right next to that person, and for an All-Star at 28 years old, to be able to do that, is really difficult to do, and I don't believe he gets enough credit for that.”
Fox had a rough NBA Finals debut, registering a lowly seven points in 3-of-13 shooting across 38 minutes in the Spurs' 105-95 Wednesday loss.
As such, Johnson raised the eyebrows of many for still sticking with Fox down the stretch, disregarding the red-hot rookie Dylan Harper to close it out for San Antonio.
Facing a must-win scenario in Game 2 while being down 0-1, Johnson can only hope that Fox will redeem himself for the Spurs against the Knicks.
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