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LOS ANGELES – The Sacramento Kings shocked the NBA world on Friday when they fired head coach Mike Brown right before the team was scheduled to fly south for a matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers. In his stead, the Kings named assistant coach Doug Christie as interim head coach with his coaching debut coming against a team he is quite familiar with.
During his playing days, he not only began his career with the Lakers, but he was part of a Sacramento Kings team that engaged in a heated rivalry with the Lakers during the early 2000’s.
Prior to Doug Christie’s coaching debut with the Kings, he reflected on this moment coming against a franchise that he’s had a lot of history with. It was something he soaked in before leaving his hotel room to get to the arena.
“It was funny because when I left my room, I always go back to make sure I don’t forget anything. So I went back and as I looked, I looked out the window and I was just like, ‘wow, this is Los Angeles,’ It’s a lot of history here. It’s a lot of history in this building, in that hallway and for it to be this team, it’s big time, “Christie said. “And for me to be with my team, we’re in Hollywood so you couldn’t write a better script. I don’t know how it turns out, whether it’s a love story or a horror story, we don’t quite know yet.”
The Kings opted to fire Mike Brown amid a disappointing start to the 2024-25 season. Coming into their matchup against the Lakers, the Kings were 13-18 and in 12th place in the Western Conference standings.
Brown was named the 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year after the Kings snapped the longest streak of missing the playoffs at 16 seasons. That year, they finished with a top-three record in the West and made the playoffs before ultimately falling to the Golden State Warriors in the first round.
Christie initially joined the Kings as an assistant coach under Luke Walton in 2021. He has been with the organization since as an assistant under Alvin Gentry and then Brown. As a player, Christie played four and half seasons with the Kings and was a big part of their Western Conference Finals run in 2002.
As a player, Christie also had stints with the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers. During his prime, he was considered one of the best defensive wings in the NBA.
