De’Aaron Fox and the San Antonio Spurs delivered a woeful offensive performance in Tuesday’s 127-114 Game 5 Western Conference finals road loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
San Antonio failed to build on its Game 4 blowout home victory, moving one loss away from elimination. Afterward, Fox drew heat from the NBA world for his rough 9-point showing, with some contrasting his modest production with his hefty four-year, $229 million maximum contract extension.
De’Aaron Fox’s Game 5 Letdown vs. Thunder Sparks Backlash
The Spurs appeared to have the upper hand entering Tuesday, as their less aggressive defensive scheme against Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander effectively neutralized OKC’s role players in Game 4. Meanwhile, the Thunder remained without star forward Jalen Williams (hamstring) and combo guard Ajay Mitchell (calf), leaving them searching for answers offensively.
However, Gilgeous-Alexander’s undermanned supporting cast came through at home in Game 5. Sophomore guard Jared McCain stepped up and scored 20 points in his first playoff start. Meanwhile, veteran guard Alex Caruso contributed 22 of OKC’s 40 bench points to supplement Gilgeous-Alexander’s game-high 32-point performance.
Conversely, after taking an early 8-point lead, San Antonio struggled to generate offense, falling behind by as many as 20 points in the second half before mounting a brief, unsuccessful comeback.
Spurs superstar big man Victor Wembanyama recorded 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks, but shot just 4-for-15 (26.7%), missing all 5 of his 3-point looks.
Fox fared even worse, mustering 9 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 steals while shooting 4-for-15 (26.7%), including 0-for-4 from beyond the arc. The two-time All-Star missed multiple open looks and repeatedly came up short on drives to the rim, prompting the NBA community to raise red flags despite him playing through an ankle injury.
De’Aaron Fox tonight:
9 PTS
4/15 FGM
0/4 3PM
28.3% TS4-years, $229 million dollars 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kjsi07IYy0
— NBA Tour Dates (@NBATourDates) May 27, 2026
“What does Fox do at a high level?” Denver sports analyst @SwipaCam asked.
What does Fox do at a high level?
— Swipa (@SwipaCam) May 27, 2026
“De’Aaron Fox deada** is doing nothing on the court. Are you watching him?” content creator Ahmed/The Ears reacted.
De’Aaron Fox deadass is doing nothing on the court
are you watching him
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) May 27, 2026
“Bad sign for the Spurs when De’Aaron Fox is getting significantly outplayed by Jared McCain,” Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor opined.
Bad sign for the Spurs when De’Aaron Fox is getting significantly outplayed by Jared McCain
— Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnor) May 27, 2026
“De’Aaron Fox and Wemby lost us the most winnable game ever,” one X user vented.
4/14 0/4 from three
4/14 0/3 from three2-3. De’Aaron Fox and Wemby lost us the most winnable game ever.
— ☕︎︎ (@j7zaza) May 27, 2026
Meanwhile, others called out Fox for failing to justify his max deal, which kicks in next season.
“The Spurs are paying De’Aaron Fox over $50M a year, that’s 💩 is so disgusting smh,” one observer fumed.
The Spurs are paying De’Aaron Fox over $50M a year, that’s 💩 is so disgusting smh…
— ℕ𝔼𝕍𝔼ℝ 𝕊𝔸𝕋𝕀𝕊𝔽𝕀𝔼𝔻. (@Keim_IsRare) May 27, 2026
“De’Aaron Fox has the worst contract in the league, good luck San Antonio trying to get off of it,” another asserted.
Deaaron fox has the worst contract in the league, good luck San antonio trying to get off of it
— William Newbern (@willsportz_) May 27, 2026
Now holding a 3-2 series lead, the Thunder sit one win away from returning to the NBA Finals. The Spurs will likely need a far better effort from Fox and Wembanyama to extend the series during Thursday’s do-or-die Game 6 clash in San Antonio.
