Doug Christie couldn’t have asked for a more dramatic setting as he embarked on his first shootaround as interim head coach of the Sacramento Kings, as detailed by Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
As Ice Cube’s classic “It Was a Good Day” echoed through USC’s Galen Center on Saturday morning, Christie rapped along, bringing a nostalgic energy to the gym.
Over 30 years after starting his career with the Los Angeles Lakers, Christie was back in L.A., preparing to face his former team, now as the leader of the Kings.
The Kings’ season has been anything but smooth, with a disappointing 13-18 record placing them 13th in the Western Conference. They’d lost five consecutive games and 12 of their last 17. But despite the struggles, a change in leadership seemed to inject a spark of optimism. Malik Monk, who praised the “passion” that former head coach Mike Brown brought to the team, noted the shift in energy during the shootaround.
“All the vibes were high,” Monk said, via McMenamin. “Everybody is happy. Everybody is ready to play tonight.”
Christie’s first game as head coach was also marked by the return of All-Star Domantas Sabonis, who had missed the previous game due to illness. Despite not traveling with the team, Sabonis arranged his own flight to join the Kings in L.A., McMenamin reported.
“I got here and went right onto the court,” Sabonis said. “We’re all focused on winning the game. But we obviously know we haven’t been performing at our best. And we have to do a better job. Me, as one of the leaders of the team, I got to make sure that that happens. We got to win all the games that we can.”
One of the most significant moments following Brown’s firing came in the aftermath of a costly mistake by De’Aaron Fox in the loss to Detroit. Fox fouled Jaden Ivey on a 3-pointer in the closing seconds, allowing Ivey to tie the game with a free throw. Fox spoke about the conversation he had with Brown just before the firing.
“We were talking about in-game stuff, what we would do towards the end of games,” Fox said. “Definitely didn’t know that that little conversation — that’s really normal — would have been the last one with him as a head coach.”
The decision to part ways with Brown shocked many, including Sabonis, who was asleep when he received the news.
Monk learned of it on social media, saying, “It’s the NBA. Anything can happen. So, next man up, I guess.” Fox, although surprised, received a heads-up a bit earlier. “I found out a minute before everybody else did,” he said.
For Fox, there was no sense of “guilt” over the decision.
“You can be traded at any point. Released. Cut. Fired. Whatever it may be,” Fox said. “I wouldn’t use the word ‘guilt.’ But that’s the nature of the job that we have.”
Before leaving for L.A., Christie addressed the team. His message was clear: “To come out and stick together, fight and just be us, be who we are and turn this thing around,” Sabonis shared.
Monk added a brief but powerful message to Kings fans, who had watched the team break a 17-year postseason drought just a season ago: “Sorry, fans. We’re going to turn it around. That’s it. Short and sweet.”
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