The Sacramento Kings fired coach Mike Brown on Friday, ESPN and The Athletic reported, less than halfway into his third season at the helm.
Brown, 54, guided the Kings to the Western Conference playoffs in his first year on the job (2022-23), when he was voted NBA Coach of the Year, and to the play-in round last season. The team awarded him with a three-year contract extension reportedly worth $30 million in July.
But Sacramento is 13-18 this season, 12th place in the 15-team West. The Kings have lost five in a row — all at home — after the Detroit Pistons beat them 114-113 on Thursday.
Assistant coach Doug Christie will be tapped as the Kings’ interim coach, multiple reports said. Christie, on the Kings’ staff since 2021, played 15 seasons in the NBA, including 4 1/2 for Sacramento from 2000-05.
Brown went 107-88 in his two-plus seasons leading the Kings, who hired him after a six-year run as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors. Brown went 305-187 in six seasons coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers and 42-29 in parts of two seasons with the Lakers.
The Kings visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday before returning home for three more games next week.
–Field Level Media
