John Calipari sticks up for the players he coached in college, and De’Aaron Fox is no exception.
Calipari appeared on “The Dan Patrick Show” Friday and tried to defend Fox for his ill-advised layup attempt at the end of the San Antonio Spurs’ Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks. Unprompted, Calipari blamed Fox’s ankle injury for the blocked layup, and argued that under normal circumstances the Spurs guard would have dunked the ball and been the hero.
“Stop on De’Aaron Fox,” Calipari said. “He’s playing with a high ankle sprain. Probably shouldn’t be playing. He would normally dunk that layup. If he would’ve dunked it, he’s the hero.”
"Stop on De'Aaron Fox, he's playing with a high ankle sprain – probably shouldn't be playing. He would normally dunk that layup – if he would've dunked it, he's the hero…"
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) June 12, 2026
– @CoachCalArk on people blaming De'Aaron Fox for the #Spurs loss pic.twitter.com/BftiQYW3pK
The problem with Calipari’s logic is that he is focused on the wrong issue. Fox did not draw criticism for not converting the layup. The criticism stemmed from the fact that there was no reason whatsoever to attempt a shot, be it a dunk or a layup. Even if Fox had scored, the Spurs would have only been up three, and they would have been giving the Knicks the ball back with a chance to tie and a full 11 seconds left.
Fox’s strategy should have been to pull back, try to burn as much clock as possible, and force the Knicks to foul him. Attempting a shot never even should have been on his radar.
Fox played one year under Calipari at Kentucky in 2016-17. That was enough to get Calipari on his side for life, as is often the case with his former players. It is part of the reason players want to play for him, even if it makes him look pretty foolish sometimes.
