Kings guard De’Aaron Fox sets new career mark for 3-point goals. Here’s how he got here

It started in the gym during the summer before Mike Brown’s first season as coach in 2022, while the Sacramento Kings were still mired in their 16-season playoff drought.

De’Aaron Fox, the franchise centerpiece, was determined to take his game to another level and do what other star guards across the league did to increase their efficiency — and turbo-charge the rest of Sacramento’s offensive attack.

Fox had to improve his 3-point shooting. And he has, in a substantial way.

Fox in Miami on Wednesday night hit a 27-foot pull-up 3 early in the third quarter that gave him 120 on the season. It marked a new career high on the heels of his first All-NBA season a year ago, when he made 119 3-pointers in 73 games.

This year: He eclipsed that mark in game No. 40.

“It’s opened up his game a ton,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “People have to respect that. Even in subtle ways that don’t show up in the box score. We move him all over the place.”

Brown went on to explain how sometimes Fox is on the same side as a two-man action between center Domantas Sabonis and a shooter as they work their dribble handoffs, a staple of the offense. In the past, Fox’s defender would be able to hedge off him, knowing Fox wasn’t a lethal 3-point threat like he’s become this year, and gum up the action.

That forces defenses to make a difficult choice because Fox is making 39% of his 3s on nearly eight attempts per game after shooting 31% over his previous four seasons combined.

“They’re not leaving him,” Brown said. “... You crack back on Domas and let them throw it out to Fox and close out short. You can’t do that. He’ll make you pay. The scary part is if you let him see one or two go in, it can be a real long night for you, because he’s going to make multiple 3s, especially if you disrespect him.”

Brown, of course, spent six years with the Golden State Warriors watching Stephen Curry torture defenses with his 3-point shooting before becoming Sacramento’s head coach. Also on that staff was Luke Loucks, who joined Brown with the Kings and has been helping Fox along the way, including utilizing technology during shooting sessions. Loucks famously worked with Fox on his shooting during his honeymoon in Italy.

The focus on shooting fundamentals, which was detailed back when Fox tied a career-high with six 3s in a November win in Dallas, was to improve the arc on his shot. The Kings use shot tracking technology that has become popular at NBA practices facilities to track things like trajectory, angles and rotations through the air. Having the ball descend at at least a 45-degree angle when it gets to the hoop increases its chances of going in.

Fox, of course, is known for his quickness and ability to drive toward the basket. He averaged over 23.8 points per game over his previous four seasons despite not being particularly efficient from distance.

But this season he’s averaging 3.1 made 3s per game while his previous high over a full season was 1.8 back in 2020-21. His attempts are up to 7.9 over his previous best of 5.5, also from that year. He set a new career mark Dec. 29 with eight 3s in Atlanta. He’s averaging a career-high 27.5 points per game, up from 25.0 last season when he earned his first-career All-Star and All-NBA nods.

“I’ve seen teams go under (screens) a lot less than I have in the past,” Fox told The Bee. “It helps expand my game, but it also helps my team, because when I get downhill, guys have to help. I can either spray (to 3-point shooters) or if I’m getting to the basket, then finish.

“I think it helps our entire offense, because there are times when I’m off the ball, there are times when my defender doesn’t help at all. So just trying to be consistent with that definitely helps the team.”

Fox before Wednesday had nine games this season with at least five made 3s. He had as many during his first six seasons combined.

The 26-year-old will find out if he has made the All-Star team for the Feb. 18 game in Indianapolis when the league announces its reserves Thursday. The league returned to its traditional format of having teams made up of players from each conference after having captains draft from the All-Star pool of players in recent years.

The starters in the West, as announced last week, will be LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Fox told The Bee on Wednesday in Miami he would prefer to spend his All-Star break elsewhere, saying “I don’t really care about being an All-Star, plus Indiana’s cold.”