Had Friday’s game between the San Antonio Spurs and Charlotte Hornets been half a second longer, De’Aaron Fox would have been a hero.

Unfortunately, the clock was the undoing of a would-be game-winner for the point guard in his second game with the Spurs. The 2023 Clutch Player of the Year got the ball and made the shot he needed, but the officials waved it off for being a fraction of a second too late.

Hornets win, 117-116.

That ending came after an exchange of clutch shots in the final 10 seconds. Fox broke a 114-114 tie on a jump shot with 8.4 seconds left, but Miles Bridges, aided by a perfect pass from LaMelo Ball, responded with a 3-pointer to take the lead.

Fox joined the Spurs last weekend via a three-team trade from the Sacramento Kings, the culmination of an effort to get out of a struggling Sacramento team and join forces with Victor Wembanyama in the guard’s home state of Texas. After a successful debut, Fox posted 22 points, six assists and four steals on Friday.

Spurs rookie Stephon Castle led all scorers with 33 points off the bench.

The loss is the first game of a road back-to-back for the 22-27 Spurs, who will face the Orlando Magic on Saturday.