SACRAMENTO, Calif. -
The Sacramento Kings announced today that the team has signed 2017 first round draft selections De’Aaron Fox, Justin Jackson and Harry Giles to contracts, according to General Manager Vlade Divac.
Tabbed with the fifth overall pick, Fox was just one of four freshman in the nation to average at least 16.7 points (.479 FG%, .246 3pt%, .736 FT%), 4.6 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per contest. A Bob Cousy Award finalist, he paced the SEC in assist average and earned Third Team All-American honors by CBS Sports, USA Today and ESPN, as well as AP Honorable Mention accolades. The 6-3, 170-pound guard posted 22.0 points (.618 FG%, 3-5 3pt, .700 FT%), 3.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists en route to MVP honors during the Wildcats 2017 SEC Championship run, including a Kentucky freshman tournament-record 28 points versus Alabama in the semifinals. He later encored the performance in the Sweet 16 with 39 points (13-20 FG) against UCLA, the most ever by a freshman in a tournament game.
A junior out of North Carolina, Jackson was taken 15th overall after averaging 18.3 points, a career-high 4.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists as a consensus First Team All-American and ACC Player of the Year while helping lead UNC to the 2017 NCAA Championship. His 239 points scored in the tournament were the second-most in school history. In North Carolina’s six NCAA Tournament wins, Jackson paced the Tar Heels in scoring (19.5 ppg), field goals (41), three-pointers (15), assists (22) and steals (9). He also set a new single-season UNC mark with 105 three pointers made. He joins Rick Fox as the only Heels with 1,600 career points, 150 three-pointers, 400 rebounds and 300 assists.
An early entry candidate selected 20th overall, Giles accrued averages of 3.9 points (.577 FG%, 12-24 FT), 3.8 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 11.5 minutes, ranking fourth among ACC players with at least 150 minutes on the season in rebounds per 40 minutes (13.3). The 6-10 forward recorded a 10-point, 12-rebound double-double effort against Georgia Tech and a season-high 12 points versus Boston College before playing an integral role in the ACC Tournament semifinals, posting six points, seven rebounds and four blocks in just 15 minutes in a win over eventual national champion North Carolina. As a prep talent out of Oak Hill and Wesleyan Christian Academies, Giles was honored as a First Team All-USA selection by USA Today, a Third Team Naismith Trophy All-American and Fourth Team Max Preps All American as a junior in 2015 after averaging 23.9 points and 12.5 rebounds to lead Wesleyan Christian to a NCISAA 3A runner-up finish. He was later rated the No. 1 overall recruit in his class by ESPN, as well as No. 2 overall by Rivals, Scout and 247 Sports.