De’Aaron Fox had a tough act to follow when he arrived at Kentucky. He made it look easy Friday night.
Following in the footsteps of Tyler Ulis, Fox made a good first impression in Kentucky’s annual Blue-White game. Fox scored 31 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Blue team to a 110-94 victory over the White squad.
The freshman point guard added six assists and five steals, giving Big Blue Nation a glimpse of what to expect this season. Fox played the entire contest and enjoyed his first unofficial game at Rupp Arena.
“It was fun,” Fox said. “We went out there, had fun. We competed. We had to play all 40 minutes, so guys got tired and you started seeing it towards the end.”
Although fatigue set in down the stretch, Fox was driven by his speed, his most-prized possession on the court. Although his quickness has always been an asset, Fox is adjusting to a faster pace at the collegiate level.
“It’s something I’m kind of learning to do, learning to use my speed a little bit more,” Fox said.
Fox demonstrated just fast he can push on the proverbial gas pedal during one play when Kentucky coach John Calipari was urging him to push the ball in transition rather than letting up while bringing the ball down the court. Within seconds, Fox drove the lane and finished the play with a dazzling slam dunk.
As for getting a nudge from his coach, Fox said he doesn’t mind the extra push.
“It’s kind of hard because you gotta be in better shape to be running a hundred miles per hour all game,” he said. “It’s kind of tough, but at the same time, it’s something that you love to do. A coach is telling you to do and letting you get all your marbles off, it’s good. Everybody wants to have that type of coach.”
Although Fox has a feel for his role, the next task will be adjusting to playing alongside Isaiah Briscoe and Malik Monk and other different combinations within the backcourt. Fox has some past history with Monk but hasn’t been in the same backcourt with Briscoe.
“I think we can do a lot of damage,” he said. “You saw how Isaiah got to the rim today. You saw Malik’s pull-up. You saw me get to the rim. So we’re just all going complement each other. I don’t feel like other teams have three guards that can defend all three of us, so it’s going to be tough.”
It proved to be a very difficult task in the scrimmage as Fox, Briscoe and Monk combined for 96 points, while Kentucky’s guards accounted for 58 percent of the scoring in the contest.
Calipari isn’t sure what to expect when he starts tinkering with different combinations but expects either Fox or Briscoe to be on the court at all times.
“We’ve got to figure it out,” said Calipari who addressed the issue with all three players Friday. “We haven’t played them all together. We’re going to start (Saturday). We’ve got a lot to figure out. It’s going to be organic. as it always is here. We’ve got to figure out different rotations (and) who plays better with whom.”
Taking Calipari’s trust as a compliment, Fox likes the confidence Calipari has placed on the team’s potential starting backcourt.
“We’re going to play a lot of minutes together,” he said. “All three of us together, we’re going to play a lot. So he’s just showing us all the confidence that he has in his point guards.”
Senior Dominique Hawkins also figures to play a role in the backcourt and likes the impact the newcomers have made so far this season.
“Big-time players that came here and with Isaiah coming back it’s a big deal for us,” Hawkins said. “Everybody knows I’m able to be a part of this team and I’ve shown in the Louisville game (last year) I can hit shots … Just have confidence in myself and I’ll be able to knock down shots.”
Also within his nature, Hawkins also doesn’t mind sharing the spotlight.
“I’m used to it (and) I’m a humble guy,” he said. “I love sharing. I’m the type of role player who will do whatever it takes to win.”
Keith Taylor is a senior sports writer for KyForward, where he primarily covers University of Kentucky sports. Reach him at keith.taylor@kyforward.com or @keithtaylor21 on Twitter