Kings, GM Monte McNair Parting Ways; Calvin Booth Linked To Job

The Sacramento Kings and general manager Monte McNair have agreed to part ways following the team’s blowout home loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, per Sam Amick of The Athletic.

Sacramento’s season came to an end with the loss, which took place in a Western Conference play-in game. The Kings finished in ninth place in the West standings and have lost in each of the last two play-in tourneys. This after they won the Pacific Division title three seasons ago.

McNair and the Kings fired coach Mike Brown in late December, replacing Brown with interim coach Doug Christie. Things didn’t change much from that point, with Sacramento experiencing an up-and-down second half of the season.

Still, the Kings’ run under McNair has been among the best stretches in the franchise’s history, which dates back to their days as the Rochester Royals and the very beginnings of the NBA.

“McNair spent five seasons running the Kings, winning NBA executive of the year in 2023 when Sacramento went 48-34 and snapped a record 16-year drought to make the playoffs,” wrote ESPN’s Shams Charania.

“The Kings had a .488 win percentage under McNair — from 2006-07 to before McNair took over, the franchise had a .362 win percentage, second-worst in the NBA during that span.”

After finishing 48-34 in the 2022-23 season, the Kings saw a slight decline with 46 wins last year, followed by a drop to 40-42 this season. The offseason acquisition of DeMar DeRozan has not yielded the impact the front office had hoped for, while the midseason trade of De’Aaron Fox marked a significant shift in the franchise’s direction.

Fox, a former All-Star guard, was dealt to the San Antonio Spurs after informing the Kings he would not sign a contract extension.

Changes had already begun within the organization. Assistant general manager Wes Wilcox departed earlier this year to take the general manager role at the University of Utah, raising questions about the stability of Sacramento’s executive leadership.

Per HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, former Denver Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth is viewed by several league insiders as a potential candidate to replace McNair. Booth, who helped construct Denver’s 2023 championship roster, remains highly regarded around the league.

McNair, meanwhile, could potentially return to the Houston Rockets’ front office. He previously spent more than a decade with the Rockets before taking the Kings job.

Christie’s status with the Kings is also believed to be very much up in the air. He indicated to reporters that he wanted to remain with the team as the full-time coach.

“This is where I want to be, I think you all know that,” Christie said. “I need to finish what I started.”