Mike Brown‘s firing was surprising and controversial, but the Kings are looking like a different team since Doug Christie took over as head coach, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Playing Sunday without De’Aaron Fox, they won by 30 points at Golden State as the players displayed a renewed enthusiasm for the game.
“I would say it’s that more than anything, just going out there and playing freely with joy and for one another,” DeMar DeRozan responded when asked to explain the change. DeRozan clarified that he didn’t mean to imply there wasn’t freedom and joy with Brown in charge, but the team has responded to the challenge of an in-season coaching shakeup.
“Whenever you’re going through any type of ups and downs, when the downs come, everything just feels extremely bad,” he added. “Everything is just heightened to another level. I think with so much going on, it kind of hit the fan with having a coaching change in the middle of the season. So much was going on that we could just sit there and kind of sob in our sorrows and let things get worse. I think we just pulled together and pulled ourselves out of that more so than anything.”
Sacramento lost its first game after Christie took over, but has since won four in a row against pretty good competition, defeating the Mavericks, Sixers, Grizzlies and Warriors. One difference has been the addition of first-round pick Devin Carter, who posted 13 points and seven rebounds Sunday in his second game since returning from offseason surgery on his left shoulder. The positive energy he and Christie have provided seems to have changed the team’s outlook.
“I think it’s contagious,” Carter said. “Once one person sees somebody else doing it, then the next person, the next person, and it just trickles down the line, so I just think it’s contagious. Obviously, we want to keep on winning. Wins are contagious. Good vibes in the locker room, good vibes in practice, and just go from there.”
There’s more on the Kings:
- Malik Monk took on a larger role Sunday with Fox sidelined, finishing with 26 points, 12 assists and four steals, Anderson adds. Christie said during his time as an assistant, he often encouraged Monk to be more fearless in his approach to the game. “Before I was sitting in this seat, we’ve had multiple conversations just about everything, and I’ve always told him, ‘Believe in yourself. I believe in you. You are a tremendous, fantastic player, and play through your mistakes.’” Christie said. “… He is just about as free as I’ve ever seen him. We’ll live with some of the things he does and his greatness will continue to shine because the kid is great.”
- Carter had a memorable NBA debut, with his father, former NBA player Anthony Carter, on the opponent’s bench as a Grizzlies assistant coach, Anderson states in a separate story. “It’s just a blessing, especially to play my first NBA game in front of him,” Devin Carter told reporters before the game. “It’s something you dream of as a kid, and the moment is here, so I’m not going to shy away from the moment.”
- The Kings haven’t determined if Fox will be available for Monday’s game against Miami, Anderson notes in another piece. He was ruled out Sunday with a right glute contusion after being undercut on a dunk attempt late in Friday’s contest.
Christie was always my favorite growing up. Hope he can right the ship and make it fun for Fox so he stays
Name any other coach who is allowed to underperform with an all-time great on the roster to the point where any assistant HC can cook him for 3+ years? All credit to Christie but him destroying Kerr proves Kerr is washed up at this job, beyond belief. Kerr has no fire, doesnt care about winning, its obviously just about cashing a paycheck for him in 2025, its clear as day. All he had to do was play Kuminga and Moody 30 MPG from day one of last season and GSW would have been a top 4 team, he instead blocked them with 2way scrubs who arent NBA talents, much like he doing now with Spencer, Waters, Santos and Podz. Moody clears them all but Kerr hates Moody and Kuminga because they arent white or short enough. Gross. Get this clown out of here!
More hot takes from twitter Davey?
Name someone who is a bandwagon fan and thinks it’s all about the dubs, oh it’s Davey j. I’ve been watching them much longer than you. This isn’t a dubs post, go away
Kerr had Durant in his prime. He kept Jayson Tatum on the Bench.
This has nothing to do with the dubs, go away
Christie may very well be a step up from MB but the front office still shouldn’t rest on its laurels, although it won’t be easy to move Demar given his questionable fit on most teams as anything other than a 6th man.
Still, between MB’s firing, giving more minutes to better players on the roster (Ellis, etc), and Carter’s return, the Kings should be okay. Except okay isn’t nearly good enough in the West. Take some swings.
Playing Ellis and a vet like Lyles more is the only change and look at the results of late. Total shocker.
It’s also having the ball in Malik Monk’s hands more, and upping the pressure on transition defense. The Warriors game was totally one-sided, and a lot of that was on Sacramento playing aggressive on both ends.
Exactly. This would be why only non-kings fans were shocked by the Brown firing. Anyone with half of a functioning eyeball could have told you that Keon needed to see the floor.
Mike wanted this team to live and die by the 3pt shot. That worked when Murray and Huerter could be counted on to hit those shots. Not so much anymore.
Truly hope Sac gives the Nets whatever they want for Johnson. Johnson is what Sac wanted Keegan to be and it’s not happening.
Mike Brown is a great guy whom all the other great guys around the league love. But he ain’t a good coach. Seems pretty obvious by now. He’s just bad at designing and adjusting schemes to put his players in positions to succeed, and that’s like 60% of the job. Appropriate that MB’s biggest defender after the firing was Michael Malone with the Nuggets, who has coasted on having the best player of his generation and has the exact same lack of imagination and unwillingness to be the bad guy as Brown.
Kings Spank the Warriors ……. nice win.
Brown’s firing… so far so good, Right?