10. De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings
De’Aaron Fox played a big role in the Sacramento Kings taking a huge step forward last season, finishing as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. Even though they lost in the first round of the playoffs at the hands of the Golden State Warriors, it’s hard to not look at last season as a success for a franchise that hadn’t qualified for the postseason since the 2006 season. Without Fox, it’s hard to see how the Kings make those strides as a franchise.
Fox made his first NBA All-Star team this past season and there’s a good chance that it won’t be his last. Fox is coming off a season in which he averaged 25 points, six assists, and four rebounds on 51 percent shooting from the field. At age 25, you can make the argument that he’s barely entering the prime of his career.
At this point, it’s a pretty easy argument to make that Fox is one of the 10-best point guards in the NBA. The only question is whether he has another professional step to make. If so, the Kings are in very good hands moving forward.