The Sacramento Kings fired Mike Brown on Friday, leaving a bad impression on some NBA coaches, who have expressed the same sentiment over the past few days.
The Kings replaced Brown with Doug Christie. Sacramento fell to 13-18 on Thursday, which led to the decision to fire Brown. However, the manner in which the head coach was sacked does not appear to go down well with others.
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Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown yells instructions from the bench during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, in Sacramento, California. (AP Photo/Randall Benton)
According to ESPN, Sacramento management informed Brown of the decision by phone as he drove to the team plane.
Michael Malone of the Denver Nuggets, Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors and J.B. Bickerstaff of the Detroit Pistons all weighed in.
Malone has some options.
“I’m not surprised that Mike Brown got fired because I was fired by the same guy,” Malone said via ESPN after the Nuggets lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers. “What really pisses me off is that they lost [Thursday] Tonight, it was, I believe, the fifth game in a row. Tragic loss. . . . They’ve practiced it this morning. He was handling the postgame media and they called him as he was driving to the airport to fly to Los Angeles.
“No class, no ball. That’s what I’m saying.”
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Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone watches the second half of an NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks on Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zarubowski)
Kerr told reporters he was “disappointed” in the firing.
“Mike is a great friend, a great coach. I’ve talked to him and we both know that’s the nature of the business,” Kerr said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “But a year and a half ago, when a guy was unanimously named coach of the year, it seemed so shocking.”
Bickerstaff echoed Malone’s words, calling the firing “classless.”
“He deserves better and you can make whatever decision you want to make and we understand that,” he added via The Athletic. “But the way you treat humans matters, and to see a coach, a guy you care about, a guy you know how good and talented he is, be treated like this, you know, it’s very disappointing that people don’t Would think of treating people as human beings and giving them the respect they deserve because they know the sacrifices coaches make for their families, their personal health and everything Mike does for the team, the organization.
“You know, to be honest, I just think it was a terrible way this was handled.”
Sacramento Kings center Isaac Jones is greeted by Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, in Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Randall Benton)
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Brown is midway through his third season with the Kings. He led the team to the playoffs in his first year in 2022-23. He has a 107-89 record as a head coach.
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