Kings' De'Aaron Fox clears COVID-19 protocols

Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox has cleared the league’s health and safety protocols, James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets.

He won’t play against the Spurs on Friday as he continues to take the final steps toward a return to action. Sacramento still has faint hopes of making the play-in tournament. It trails San Antonio by 2 1/2 games for the 1oth and final playoff spot and win on Friday, plus Fox’s return for the final week of action, could help the Kings sneak into the postseason.

Sacramento went 4-0 on its recent road trip and has five more games remaining after Friday, including a back-to-back against lottery-bound Oklahoma City.

Fox is averaging a career-best 25.2 PPG and 7.2 APG and was scoring at a 29.3 PPG clip last month before he entered protocols on April 23.