Spurs confident in De’Aaron Fox despite Game 4 blunders: ‘He will have the ball at the end of the game’
· Yahoo Sports
SAN ANTONIO — Despite a fourth quarter littered with blunders in an epic 29-point collapse in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson remains confident in starting point guard De’Aaron Fox in the clutch.
“De’Aaron Fox will have the basketball in his hands at the end of the game tomorrow,” Johnson said after practice at Frost Bank Center on Friday. “And I have the utmost confidence he’s going to deliver like he’s done countless times for us.”
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Fox was on the receiving end of criticism and scrutiny after his performance late in the Knicks’ 107-106 come-from-behind victory on Wednesday. He played 37 minutes and shot 6 of 16 from the field, 4 of 9 from 3-point range and finished with 18 points, seven assists, five rebounds, two steals, a block and four turnovers.
But only three of his 18 points came in the fourth quarter, and instead of dribbling the clock out with a one-point lead on the Spurs’ second-to-last offensive possession, Fox took an ill-advised transition layup that was blocked by OG Anunoby, a sequence that ultimately set up Anunoby’s game-winning tip-in on Jalen Brunson’s late-game attempt from downtown.
“It’s not like people have my phone number and can call me. I don’t watch those shows. It doesn’t matter. It is what it is. Can’t change it now. [It’s not like people are] just coming up and yelling in your face about it,” Fox said after practice at Frost Bank Center on Friday. “It is what it is. We’re trying to move on from that, continue to learn from the mistakes we made, how we lost the lead, finished the game poorly. We think about the next game.”
Johnson said outside opinions don’t matter, only the voices within the locker room.
“I can’t speak for everybody else. I don’t get into social media. I think I’ve been fired 212 times and we’ve traded Fox 72 times. We still have to show up and play tomorrow, and I’ve got to coach,” he said. “That’s what comes with the job. People have their opinions. I don’t care. I care what the people that matter in our building and in our organization, in that locker room, that they know how I feel. I hear them, how they feel.”
Wemby not worried
Spurs franchise cornerstone Victor Wembanyama said he’s not worried about Knicks fans set to infiltrate Frost Bank Center for Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals on Saturday.
“No, it’s not a concern,” he said after practice at his home arena on Friday. “I mean, we got good defense here in the crowd.”
On Wednesday, TickPick reported 37% of ticket sales for Game 5 in San Antonio were billed to addresses in New York with an additional 8% of ticket sales billed to addresses in New Jersey. As of Friday morning, according to Gametime, roughly 54% of tickets were billed to addresses in New York and surrounding areas, meaning Spurs fans have been selling their tickets to Knicks fans.
“People are making money. It’s the economy we live in. It’s the world we live in,” said Fox. “Am I upset about it? No. Do I understand it? Sure. I don’t think that changes what happens on the court.”
The get-in price for Game 5 also surged by $1,000, with the cheapest tickets as of June 10 clocking in at nearly $2,500.
Fatigue factor
Wembanyama said he doesn’t have time to worry about fatigue entering Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
“[It’s] definitely a factor, but it’s the playoffs. Everybody’s just as tired,” he said after practice on Friday. “I mean, it shouldn’t even be a factor in the game. Now we’ve got two days in-between games. It’s not going to be a factor.”
Wembanyama is averaging more than 40 minutes per game in the NBA Finals. He averaged 29.2 minutes per game during the regular season and less than 30 minutes through the first two rounds of the Western Conference playoffs.
“We’ve had that discussion throughout the season of his buildup of minutes. He’s played heavy minutes at times through the games. All minutes aren’t created equal. Some quarters are slow, reviews, timeouts, a game can get going like that,” said Johnson. “Looking back on it, I do believe that I have to make sure that I help him have the energy required to finish the game as strong as he needs to finish the game. Looking back on the game, I think I could have done better in that regard.
“That’s not a number of minutes. That’s not meaning he’s going to play this many minutes tomorrow. It’s looking back on the game, and that game in itself, I got to make sure that I help with that. I think I could have been better in that regard looking back from that game.”