The Kings have reportedly become the first NBA franchise in need of new head coach to make a hire this spring, agreeing to terms with Warriors assistant Mike Brown on a four-year contract, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Sacramento reportedly finalized a deal with Brown on Sunday after meeting with him over a period of two days last week, per Wojnarowski. He landed the job over former Warriors coach and ESPN analyst Marc Jackson, who was considered to be one of the other finalists to fill the vacancy.
Brown, 52, has been with Golden State since 2016 as the team’s associate head coach under Steve Kerr. He was on the sideline when the Warriors won championships in 2017 and ’18, often serving as the acting head coach when Kerr was unavailable.
Brown is expected to remain with Golden State through the end of the team’s 2022 playoff run, according to Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee.
Prior to his stint in the Bay Area, Brown held a string of head coaching jobs with the Cavaliers (2005 to ’10), the Lakers (2011 to ’12) and the Cavs once again (2013 to ’14). He led Cleveland to an Eastern Conference championship in ’07 and the NBA’s Coach of the Year award two seasons later in ’09.
During his eight seasons as a head coach, Brown has posted a 347-216 regular season record. He is 47–36 in the playoffs.
Brown will inherit a Kings team with a clear goal in mind: ending Sacramento’s 16-year playoff drought, the longest active streak in the league. The Kings are coming off of a 12th-place finish in the Western Conference this season after compiling a 30–52 record.
