In a shocking move, the Sacramento Kings fire head coach Mike Malone on Sunday night. The Kings were playing quite well until they lost their star player, DeMarcus Cousins to viral meningitis and then lost seven of nine games. Still the front office felt Malone didn’t meet expectations and gave him the boot.
via Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
There has been significant tension between management and Malone on several fronts over the past year.
Owner Vivek Ranadive has wanted the Kings to play a faster style of basketball, and D’Alessandro – who has worked with Don Nelson in Golden State and Karl in Denver – has sought a similar style. Ranadive has been a hands-on owner and expected the Kings to compete for the playoffs this season. After a 9-6 start, Cousins had been lost for nine games with viral meningitis but his absence couldn’t save Malone.
Assistant coach Ty Corbin will take over as interim head coach likely for the term of the regular season. Around the NBA, there’s a strong belief that general manager Pete D’Alessandro will pursue ex-Denver Nuggets coach George Karl, but a high-ranking Kings source insisted Sunday night that it is unlikely a full-time replacement will be hired during the regular season.
Another possible long-term candidate for the Kings: ex-Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro. Del Negro led the Bulls and Clippers to the playoffs, and has experience in coaching young stars Derrick Rose and Blake Griffin that could be beneficial in continuing the development of Cousins.
