- The Kings held their first pre-draft workout of 2022 on Tuesday, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Jaden Shackelford (Alabama), Johnny Juzang (UCLA), Hyunjung Lee (Davidson), Tyler Burton (Richmond), Keion Brooks (Kentucky), and Justyn Mutts (Virginia Tech) came to the Golden 1 Center practice facility to audition for the team.
- Kings fans will have to wait to hear from their new head coach. A press conference to introduce Mike Brown as Sacramento’s coach, which will also include GM Monte McNair, won’t occur until the Warriors are eliminated from the playoffs or win the championship, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee tweets.
- Until then, the Kings can take comfort in Steve Kerr‘s endorsement of his associate head coach, Kendra Andrews of ESPN tweets. “He’s an amazing coach and an amazing friend. Sacramento made a great choice,” Kerr said. “It’s a loss for us, but this is how it’s supposed to go.” Brown filled in for Kerr in Game 4 of Golden State’s playoff series against Memphis after Kerr tested positive for COVID.
MAY 9: Brown has been officially named Sacramento’s new head coach, the team announced in a press release.
“Mike has consistently demonstrated his ability to lead winning teams throughout his long and successful coaching career,” GM Monte McNair said in a statement. “He has worked with some of the best players in the NBA and is one of the league’s premier defensive minds. I am excited to bring his extensive experience to Sacramento.”
MAY 8: The Kings have agreed to hire Warriors associate head coach Mike Brown as the franchise’s next head coach, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Brown will sign a four-year contract, Wojnarowski reports.
Brown holds head coaching experience with the Cavaliers and Lakers from 2005-14. Prior to joining Cleveland, Brown spent time with Washington, San Antonio and Indiana as an assistant for eight years.
Brown’s record as an NBA head coach is 347-216 (.616), including a 272-167 (.620) mark during his first five years in Cleveland. During that stretch, he led the Cavs to eight playoff series victories, a Finals appearance, and a 42-29 playoff record.
Brown, the NBA’s Coach of the Year in 2008/09, has been with Golden State as an assistant on Steve Kerr‘s staff since 2016, which includes title runs in 2017 and 2018.
The Kings are coming off a season where they finished 30-52, which was the fourth-worst record in the Western Conference. They currently own the longest playoff drought in NBA history at 16 straight seasons.
Sacramento was said to be seeking a defensive-minded coach who has experience turning a lottery team into a playoff club. Brown meets that criteria.
The team chose Brown over former NBA coaches Steve Clifford and Mark Jackson, who were both finalists for the position.
The Hornets and Lakers now have the only vacant head coaching jobs in the league. Brown marks the Kings’ ninth head coach in the last decade.
- Kings owner Vivek Ranadive attended Saturday night’s playoff game, giving him a chance to see two of the finalists in his team’s head coaching search in action, notes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Mike Brown was on the sidelines as an assistant with the Warriors, while Mark Jackson was part of ABC’s broadcast team. Steve Clifford is the other finalist, and a source told Anderson that there’s nothing new on a potential decision.
- If the Kings decide to hire Brown, he will remain with the Warriors as long as they’re in the playoffs, Anderson tweets.
Warriors associate head coach Mike Brown is prepared to accept the Kings head coaching job if they offer it to him, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee reports.
Brown came to Sacramento on Thursday to meet with team representatives. The two other finalists for the job, Steve Clifford and Mark Jackson, had their second interviews with the Kings earlier this week.
- Can Kings owner Vivek Ranadive learn from his meddling mistakes of the past and let GM Monte McNair make the final call on the team’s new head coach? James Ham of The Kings Beat explores that question and delves into Ranadive’s history of involvement in prior front office/coaching moves.
The Kings, who are completing a second round of interviews with the three finalists for their head coaching job, are expected to make a decision by the end of the week, sources tell Sam Amick of The Athletic.
According to Amick, Mark Jackson and Steve Clifford have completed their final interviews, while Mike Brown had an informal visit with Kings officials on Wednesday and will have his formal sit-down with the team on Thursday.
Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report stated earlier this week that Jackson appears to be team owner Vivek Ranadive‘s preferred choice for the position, and Amick has heard the same thing from sources close to the situation. However, the Kings insist Ranadive isn’t putting his thumb on the scale and that general manager Monte McNair will be given the opportunity to make the final decision, says Amick.
There have been recent reports indicating that McNair has been given more authority and power in the Kings’ organization than previous heads of basketball operations under Ranadive. Amick suggests that the team’s decision to let Joe Dumars walk rather than promoting him to a level above McNair is a signal that Ranadive is showing support for his GM.
One of three teams currently seeking a new head coach, the Kings appear on track to finalize a hire before the Hornets or Lakers complete their respective searches.
With another regular season in the books, a handful of teams around the NBA are making head coaching changes in advance of the 2022/23 campaign.
In the space below, we’ll provide regular updates on the head coaching searches for each club that has yet to give anyone the permanent title. Some of these searches could extend well into the offseason, so be sure to check back often for the latest updates.
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Updated 6-28-22 (2:59pm CT)
Completed Searches:
Charlotte Hornets
- New coach:
- Steve Clifford (story)
- Previous coach:
- James Borrego (fired)
- Offered job:
- Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson (story)
- Also interviewed/considered:
- Other rumored candidates/targets:
Hornets leadership – apparently frustrated by the club’s subpar defense and poor play-in performances – decided this spring that Borrego was no longer the man for the job, despite his solid track record of player development.
The Hornets, said to prefer candidates with previous NBA head coaching experience, ended up meeting with a handful of former head coaches and experienced assistants. Ham was thought to be a serious candidate for the job before he accepted an offer from the Lakers, and D’Antoni and Stotts also reportedly made it deep in the process, but it was ultimately Atkinson who won out — or so it seemed.
Eight days after reportedly reaching an agreement on a four-year deal with the Hornets, Atkinson had a change of heart and decided to remain in his assistant role with the champion Warriors, sending Charlotte back to the drawing board.
With their search back on, the Hornets landed on an unlikely candidate: Clifford, who coached the team from 2013-18. He’s back for a second go-round after leading Charlotte to a pair of playoff appearances during his previous five-year stint. Clifford reportedly signed a three-year deal that includes two guaranteed seasons and a team option.
Los Angeles Lakers
- New coach:
- Darvin Ham (story)
- Previous coach:
- Frank Vogel (fired)
- Also reportedly interviewed/considered:
- Other rumored candidates/targets:
Vogel, predictably, became the fall guy in Los Angeles for one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history. The handling of Vogel’s dismissal, the Lakers’ cap inflexibility, and rumors of front office meddling raised questions about the position’s appeal for a number of would-be candidates, especially those who already had head coaching jobs. Targets like Nurse, Rivers, and Howard never seemed realistic.
After narrowing their search down to three reported finalists, the Lakers opted for a first-time head coach – Bucks assistant Ham – over a pair of candidates with previous head coaching experience in Stotts and Atkinson. L.A. will be hoping Ham can replicate the success that first-timers (and former players) like Ime Udoka and Willie Green had in 2021/22.
Ham reportedly agreed to a four-year contract with the Lakers.
Sacramento Kings
- New coach:
- Mike Brown (story)
- Previous coach:
- Alvin Gentry (interim coach not retained)
- Also reportedly interviewed/considered:
Gentry, who replaced Luke Walton during the first half of 2021/22, previously stuck around following interim stints in Detroit and Phoenix to become those teams’ permanent head coaches, but he was unable to replicate that feat in Sacramento, leading the club to an underwhelming 24-41 record to close out the season.
After the Kings decided to replace Gentry, a report indicated that they wanted to hire a defensive-minded head coach who had experience turning a lottery team into a playoff club. Brown (Cleveland), Jackson (Golden State), and Clifford (Charlotte and Orlando) – Sacramento’s three finalists – all fit that bill. The team ultimately chose Brown, hiring him away from a Golden State franchise that Kings governor Vivek Ranadive used to own a stake in.
Brown reportedly received a four-year contract from the Kings.
Utah Jazz
- New coach:
- Will Hardy (story)
- Previous coach:
- Quin Snyder (stepped down)
- Interviewed/expected to interview:
- Former NBA head coach Terry Stotts (story)
- Jazz assistant Alex Jensen (story)
- Knicks assistant Johnnie Bryant (story)
- Bucks assistant Charles Lee (story)
- Celtics assistant Joe Mazzulla (story)
- Former NBA head coach Frank Vogel (story)
- Jazz assistant Lamar Skeeter (story)
- Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin (story)
- Suns assistant Kevin Young (story)
- Heat assistant Chris Quinn (story)
- Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney (story)
- Grand Rapids Gold coach Jason Terry (story)
- Pistons assistant Jerome Allen (story)
- Sixers assistant Sam Cassell (story)
Speculation about Snyder’s future began well before the Jazz were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. While Utah reportedly had no interest in replacing Snyder, the veteran coach decided it was time for him to move on after spending the last eight years with the franchise.
With the Jazz expected to consider major roster changes this summer after another disappointing finish to the season, the team was reportedly seeking a coach that could command “buy-in and respect” from Utah’s players. The focus was said to be on candidates who were highly regarded for their player development skills and defensive acumen.
The team cast a wide net and ultimately landed on Celtics assistant Hardy, who served for several years under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio before joining Ime Udoka in Boston. Hardy, a first-time head coach, will be the NBA’s youngest active head coach at age 34.
He reportedly got a five-year deal from Utah.
The Kings are interviewing the three finalists — Mark Jackson, Steve Clifford and Mike Brown — for their vacant head coaching position this week, and it looks as if one might have the upper hand. League sources tell Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report that Jackson appears to be the frontrunner for the job and the favored choice of owner Vivek Ranadive.
Ranadive, who was the vice chairman of the Warriors when Jackson was their head coach from 2011-14, has long been an admirer of Jackson and pushed Sacramento’s front office to consider him for the lead assistant/associate head coach position that ultimately went to Alvin Gentry in 2020, sources tell Fischer.
It has been previously reported that the Kings are searching for a defensive-minded coach with previous head coaching experience, and all three finalists check those boxes. However, Ranadive is said to be looking for a vocal, public face for the franchise to create a day-to-day identity, according to Fischer, who notes that Jackson is popular among players.
A report last month indicated that LeBron James would be “enthused” to see Jackson as a candidate for the Lakers‘ vacancy, and sources tell Fischer that LaMelo Ball also favors Jackson for the Hornets‘ opening.
One major wrinkle to the notion that Jackson appears to be the favored choice of Ranadive is that the owner has repeatedly told colleagues around the league that general manager Monte McNair has full authority over the team’s basketball operations. Fischer points out that the decision to fire Luke Walton early in the season came from McNair, not Ranadive.
McNair appears to be leaning toward Brown as his top candidate for the position, multiple sources tell Fischer. Brown also has Warriors ties – he has been an assistant coach for Golden State for the past six years – and used to work with Kings assistant GM Wes Wilcox when the two were with Cleveland.
Fischer writes that if Jackson isn’t selected for the position, it could be partly because Joe Dumars left the organization to work in the league office — Dumars wanted to hire Jackson to become Detroit’s head coach in 2011. Dumors reportedly wanted more control over Sacramento’s front office, with McNair reporting to him instead of Ranadive, but the owner wasn’t interested in that arrangement.
As for former interim head coach Gentry, sources tell Bleacher Report that he’s been offered a role in Sacramento’s front office, but Gentry is looking into pursuing a job as a consultant, similar to the role Clifford recently held with the Nets.
- Among the three finalists for the coaching job, Mike Brown is the Kings’ best choice, James Ham of The Kings Beat opines. Brown checks all of the boxes, has the best résumé, and deserves another head coaching opportunity, Ham writes. Steve Clifford would be a safe choice but hasn’t enjoyed previous success like Brown, while Ham believes Mark Jackson would be a major risk.