NBA Finals: De'Aaron Fox Refuses to Lose Faith Despite 3-1 Deficit: "We Have to Win Tomorrow and Give Ourselves Another Chance"

De'Aaron Fox addressed the San Antonio Spurs at practice following the tough loss in Game 4 of the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. The point guard spoke about the need to maintain leads, close out games better, and prevent frustration from undermining the team's confidence. With the series at 3-1 against them, Fox insisted the Spurs aren't looking three games ahead—they're only focused on winning Game 5.

Q. After how Game 4 went, what did the film show you about where things went wrong? How do you evaluate your own performance?

DE'AARON FOX: I mean, for us, what are we going to do when we get up 10, 15 points? Basically in every game we've had some kind of lead and we're down 3-1. We have to find a way to sustain those leads. We have to find a way to close out games.

Q. I think this team has talked about how important you've been to them throughout the year in terms of growth. In a game like this, how do you separate some mistakes from the overall belief that you've gotten this far, from that connection you have with Mitch?

DE'AARON FOX: I think these games have shown us that we have an opportunity. It's not like we're going out there and they're running us off the court. I think we've had the biggest lead in all four games. We've lost those leads. The games have tightened up. Obviously, we won the third one.

Every time we get that lead, that's when the game starts, that's when the game is in play. They've made bigger plays down the stretch. In the first game, a tied game, they get a 10-point lead. In the last game, I mean, their biggest lead was one.

Like I said before, we have to find ways to keep extending our lead. When they get the games tight, we have to find ways to execute down the stretch. I think that's where these games have been.

Q. Which way is the pendulum swinging now? On one hand, yes, you've had the biggest leads in all four games, chances to win all of them, and you're down 3-1. Is there confidence because you've had those leads or is frustration starting to creep in because three of them got away?

DE'AARON FOX: Obviously it's frustrating to be down. We still have that belief because we've seen it. We've seen that it can be done, that teams have come back from 3-1.

I think even in those series, the games they lost, they were losing them by double digits. The games we're losing have all been close.

We still believe we have a chance to win. But we're taking it game by game. We're not looking at it like we need to win three games. We have to win tomorrow and then we give ourselves the chance to play another game. Then you look at that next game.

We're not trying to get ahead of ourselves, take the easy road, take shortcuts. We're looking at tomorrow's game and that's the only game we're going to think about tomorrow.

Q. They play with five shooters for much of the game. You haven't had to see that much on the road. How challenging is that defensively during the game, particularly with how Victor can't spend as much time playing that position down low?

DE'AARON FOX: I think a big part of that is the process we have. You can make shots, you can miss shots, whatever. It's how we're defending. When we do the things we're supposed to do, we force them to take tougher shots. If they make them, credit to them. When we do that, we force them to miss, and that's when we're at our best.

We go back and look at what happened in the second half, our process wasn't there. They're getting open shots, they're getting offensive rebounds because we're out of position. That's the most important thing for us.

Obviously, it's something difficult to do over and over and over again. When we do those things and we stay on top of what we're supposed to do, we make it harder on them offensively.

Q. Why is it so hard to go back and execute your game plan or stay within your process when your head is underwater?

DE'AARON FOX: I don't think it's necessarily when they're going on a run or when they're making shots. It's on us. We're dictating a lot of what's happening. When we don't do those things, they go on a run.

Like I said, even if the process is right and they're making shots, you want to keep holding onto that process.

There are things where there's a lack of communication here and there. Then that becomes a bit of a domino effect. When we don't start a possession the right way, something bad ends up happening at the end of the possession, whether it's they make a shot or they get two or three extra possessions.

Q. You've been through a lot in this league, you've had a lot of success. This level of attention, of scrutiny, a tough ending… how have these last two days been for you processing that attention, that scrutiny?

DE'AARON FOX: It's not like people have my phone number and can call me [smiles]. I don't watch those shows. It doesn't matter. It is what it is. You can't change it anymore. You just come here and have it yelled in your face.

It is what it is. We're trying to move on, keep learning from the mistakes we made, how we lost the lead, how we closed out the game poorly. We think about the next game.

Q. What's going through your head when you think that for tomorrow's game the number of Knicks fans will be greater than in the first and second games? A lot of those tickets were sold by Spurs fans. Anything on your mind?

DE'AARON FOX: I mean, is that something to…?

People are making money. It's the economy we live in. It's the world we live in. Am I upset about that? No. Do I understand it? Of course.

I don't think that changes what happens on the court.