SAN ANTONIO -- On Sunday, San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson said De'Aaron Fox's performance in Game 4 of the team's first-round series with the Portland Trail Blazers "might've been his best game as a Spur."
Two nights later, Fox provided arguably his most definitive showing.
Fox dropped 13 of his team-high 21 points in the fourth quarter Tuesday in leading a 114-95 Game 5 win over Portland as San Antonio captured its first playoff series victory since 2017.
The Spurs now await the winner of the Denver-Minnesota series, which the Timberwolves lead 3-2.
"De'Aaron is nice," Spurs forward Julian Champagnie said. "I've been in the league a couple years now. I've faced him a couple times. I've been on the opposite side and it's not fun to guard him. We want him to be that guy for us, that closer. And he just happens to be really good at it. It's his world and we're kind of living in it."
Fox scored or assisted on 42 points in Game 5, with teammates hitting 9 of 12 for 21 points off his passes. San Antonio entered the final frame leading by 21 points. But just 3:58 into the quarter, Portland had pulled within nine points after embarking on an 11-0 run capped by a Sidy Cissoko 3-pointer.
With 6:17 left to play, Fox subbed in for his final stint of the night and scored San Antonio's next nine points to extend the lead to 13.
"It's taken a while, but it definitely feels good," said Fox, who shot 8-of-14 with nine assists and a steal over 34 minutes. "We felt like we put ourselves into position to win [in] all five of these games. There are times we go through a dry spell or have turnovers. Those things happen. I try not to necessarily fix those things myself. For me, especially in the fourth, it was just [important to] continue to move. I was denied a lot this series. They were physical with me off the ball. I had a good fourth quarter and we tried to put them away."
The winner of the inaugural NBA Clutch Player of the Year in 2022-23, Fox scored a game-high 28 points in Game 4 as the Spurs became the first team in league playoff history to trail by 15 points or more at halftime and win by 15-plus points.
"He was a Clutch Player of the Year for a reason," Johnson said of Fox after Game 5. "He's in a different situation now in terms of at times having the basketball in his hands at that volume every single night in the fourth quarter. He may be as good as any player I've ever seen in balancing how to play off it, then when to go on it. And when he gets on it, he doesn't mess around. When we help him with our organization and spacing and give him space to operate, we'll be even that much better. But he took over the game clearly again tonight."
Champagnie's shooting helped the Spurs get off to a fast start in Game 5. He connected on 5 of 7 in the first half, making 4 of 5 from 3-point range, to pace a Spurs squad that shot 67% to tie its highest field goal percentage in any half this season, including the playoffs.
Victor Wembanyama and Fox's backcourt mate, Stephon Castle, supplied stifling defense that limited Portland to 35.1% shooting from the field and 23.4% from deep. As the primary defender, Castle held the Trail Blazers to 4-of-13 from the field and 2-of-10 from 3-point range.
"It was probably our most professional game of the series," Castle said. "We punched them in the chest first in a game that mattered, especially when they were on the ropes. Just watching [Fox] play, not really pressing or forcing anything and then to be able to close a game out like that, it's a talent. Having him with us, especially in late, close games when things start getting tight, to have that stability from a vet guard is good to be a part of."
The Trail Blazers shot 3-of-12 and were blocked six times on attempts contested by Wembanyama in Game 5, according to ESPN tracking.
Throughout the series, Portland made 19% of the shots Wembanyama contested, with the Frenchman making 16 blocks. Wembanyama became the third player since blocks became an official statistic (1973-74) to average 20 points and 4 blocks over his first four career playoff games, joining Brook Lopez (2013) and Alonzo Mourning (1993).
"That was just one example of how a series can go, and that's a good way to start the playoffs," Wembanyama said. "We gained experience. And I'm still hungry for even better matchups."