De'Aaron Fox is a perfect fit with Spurs if you ignore the Dylan Harper context

San Antonio Spurs star De'Aaron Fox has a lot to prove ahead of the 2026-27 season and will have to show he belongs after the emergence of Dylan Harper. Fox was thoroughly outplayed by Harper in the NBA Finals and, frankly, throughout much of the playoffs.

That has led to questions about whether Fox is hampering Harper's development and if the Spurs should consider trading him. I was initially on the trade Fox train but have tentatively stepped off.

The main reason being that the Spurs didn't do Fox any favors with how they used him last season. He is clearly comfortable playing with the ball in his hands and had success doing so earlier last season when both Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle were out.

Obviously, San Antonio needs all three players to be healthy in addition to Harper and for Fox to be the player that they need him to be. The only catch is that he needs the ball in his hands to succeed, and Harper is preventing that.

De'Aaron Fox is a perfect Spurs fit if you ignore Dylan Harper

If San Antonio were to give Fox the ball back next season, then—assuming his speed returns—he could immediately deliver on his potential. Getting more out of him is not only the best way for San Antonio to dramatically improve but also raise his trade value enough to eventually be moved.

Ironically, having Harper has made Fox less valuable. If the Spurs didn't draft Harper, then they would have a clear-cut Big 3 of Wembanyama, Fox, and Castle. Harper complicates that, which is the NBA equivalent of first-world problems.

They'll get no sympathy for that for sure. The simplest solution—aside from trading Fox—is to better utilize him. He clearly isn't as bad as he played in the NBA Finals, but it underscores the need for the Spurs to feature him more.

I know it sounds backwards, having a player struggle on the biggest stage and then rewarding him with a bigger role, but hear me out.

The Spurs must unlock De'Aaron Fox at Harper's expense

Fox's situation is very similar to former Spur LaMarcus Aldrige's situation after the 2017-18 season.

San Antonio basically turned him into a big man who set screens and stood out of the way on offense rather than actively featuring him. Fortunately, former Spurs coach Gregg Popovich realized his mistake and sought to feature him more.

What followed was Aldridge's best season, averaging 23.4 points and 8.5 rebounds while dragging a sketchy Spurs team to the playoffs. The point is, playing more to Fox's strengths could unlock his full potential.

The Spurs must make things work with both Fox, Castle, and Harper

That means playing Fox off-ball less and running more pick-and-rolls involving him and Wembanyama. He'll have to regain his quickness to make that work, but it would go a long way towards helping Fox get going.

Yes, that means that Castle and Harper will have to play more off-ball. Luckily, they're both improving as shooters. Both Castle and Harper will still get reps with the ball, particularly Harper with the second unit, but Fox should be the primary playmaker on the perimeter.

Hopefully the end result is that Fox bounces back, the Spurs win back-to-back championships, and they eventually trade him for positive value. However, it will require sacrifice from Castle and especially Harper to get that point.

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