Overview
- De'Aaron Fox was ruled out less than an hour before tip-off Monday with a right ankle sprain for Game 1 against the Thunder.
- Coach Mitch Johnson had expressed optimism earlier in the day after Fox said he would test the ankle during shootaround.
- Fox hurt the ankle in the semifinals when Minnesota's Ayo Dosunmu landed on it in Game 4, then played through Games 5 and 6.
- Rookie guard Dylan Harper will start in Fox's place, and Keldon Johnson is expected to take on a larger scoring and playmaking load.
- Fox averaged 18.8 points and 5.8 assists this postseason after an 18.6-point, 6.2-assist regular season, and the Spurs also have Luke Kornet available after he was listed as questionable.