Sacramento Kings players speak on Mike Brown firing ahead of game vs. Lakers

‘Part of the business’: Sacramento Kings players speak on Mike Brown firing ahead of game vs. Lakers

Updated: 7:57 PM PST Dec 28, 2024

HIS THIRD SEASON. THIS COMES AS THE LOS ANGELES AS THE TEAM IS IN LOS ANGELES TO PLAY THE LAKERS TONIGHT. KCRA 3’S MICHELLE DAPPER IS LIVE IN LA AND GIVES US A PREVIEW OF TONIGHT’S GAME. YEAH. GOOD EVENING CECIL. WE ARE LIVE OUTSIDE OF CRYPTO.COM ARENA, WHERE AGAIN, THE SACRAMENTO KINGS GET READY TO TAKE ON THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS JUST OVER 24 HOURS AGO, THE FRANCHISE DID FIRE HEAD COACH MIKE BROWN, BUT THE TEAM ARRIVED IN LOS ANGELES YESTERDAY. AND WHILE THIS IS THE SCENE FROM THE TEAM THIS MORNING AS THEY WERE PRACTICING AT THE GALEN CENTER FOR THE FIRST TIME UNDER THE DIRECTION OF INTERIM HEAD COACH DOUG CHRISTIE, THE PLAYERS SAYING THERE WAS A DIFFERENT VIBE AROUND THE TEAM TODAY. THEY ALSO SAID THE PLAN MOVING FORWARD IS TO TRY AND SIMPLIFY SOME THINGS ON OFFENSE WHILE STILL PLAYING FAST, AND DOUG CHRISTIE REALLY DOES WANT TO EMPHASIZE ON THE FOCUS ON DEFENSE. AS FOR THE FIRING OF HEAD COACH MIKE BROWN, UNFORTUNATELY IT’S THE NATURE OF THE BUSINESS AND THE NBA. I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, WE ALL KNOW THE JOB THAT WE HAVE. YOU KNOW, YOU COULD BE TRADED AT ANY POINT, RELEASED, CUT, FIRED, WHATEVER IT MAY BE. I MEAN, I WOULDN’T USE THE WORD GUILT, BUT YOU KNOW, THAT’S THAT’S THE NATURE OF THE JOB THAT WE HAVE. BUT I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY HIM SIGNING HIS EXTENSION THIS SUMMER, WE FELT LIKE, YOU KNOW, WE’D BE TOGETHER, YOU KNOW, A WHOLE LOT LONGER. BUT THAT’S THE DECISION THAT THEY MADE. BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, TO, YOU KNOW, HE’S STILL GETTING PAID, YOU KNOW, A GREAT PART OF BEING AN NBA PLAYER, BEING AN NBA COACH IS THOSE THINGS CAN HAPPEN. BUT HIS CONTRACT IS GUARANTEED. SO AND HE TRUSTED ME IN MY CAREER. YOU KNOW HE PUT HE PUT ME IN A POSITION TO TO SUCCEED AND GAVE ME A LOT OF CONFIDENCE, YOU KNOW. AND HE’S HELPED ME FORM MY CAREER. YOU KNOW IN THE NBA. AND YOU KNOW IT’S JUST PART OF THE BUSINESS. YOU KNOW THINGS HAPPEN THAT WAY. I HAD NO IDEA I WAS SLEEPING TO BE HONEST WHEN THIS HAPPENED I WAS TRYING TO REST AND I GOT WOKEN UP BY THE NEWS. THE ENERGY HE BROUGHT, THE PASSION HE HAD FOR THE GAME, THE PASSION HE HAD FOR JUST BEING ON THE BASKETBALL COURT, BEING AROUND THE GAME. YEAH, THAT’S THAT’S WHAT I TOOK THE MOST OUT OF. HE NEVER TOOK ANYTHING FOR GRANTED. AND YEAH, THANK YOU MIKE. THANK YOU MIKE. INDEED. AND THANKS FOR GETTING THE KINGS BACK INTO THE PLAYOFFS. AS FOR TONIGHT, WELL, WE’LL HEAR FROM HEAD INTERIM HEAD COACH DOUG CHRISTIE COMING UP TONIGHT AT 6:00. BUT AGAIN IT’S KINGS AND LAKERS HERE AT CRYPTO.COM ARENA. TIP OFF SLATED FOR 730 TONIGHT. AS THE KINGS DO LOOK FOR THEIR VERY FIRST WIN OVER THE LAKERS THIS SEASON AS THEY’RE CURRENTLY ZERO AND THREE SO FAR. WE’LL SEE IF THEY CAN GET THE WIN TONIGHT.

‘Part of the business’: Sacramento Kings players speak on Mike Brown firing ahead of game vs. Lakers

Updated: 7:57 PM PST Dec 28, 2024

While the surprising move by the Sacramento Kings to fire Head Coach Mike Brown was made just a day ago, the players still have a game tonight. KCRA 3’s Michelle Dapper made the trip to Los Angeles on Saturday to catch up with the players before a pivotal game vs. the Lakers. The team gave their thoughts on the release of Brown, who helped end a 16-year playoff drought in Sacramento during the 2022-23 season. “We all know the job that we have , you can be traded at any time, released, cut fired or whatever it may be,” said De’Aaron Fox. “I wouldn’t use the word guilt. Obviously with him signing his extension this summer we thought we’d be together a lot longer but that’s the decision that they made. At the end of the day he’s still getting paid, that’s the great part of .” Domantas Sabonis said he was asleep when the news broke about Brown being fired. “He put me in a position to succeed and gave me a lot of confidence. He has helped me in my career,” Sabonis said. “It’s just part of the business, things happen that way.” Malik Monk expressed his gratitude for Brown, the unanimous Coach of the Year in 2023. “The energy he brought, the passion he had for the game…that’s what I took most out of him,” Monk said. “He never took anything for granted. Thank you Mike.” The Kings are trying to end a five-game losing streak on Saturday against the Lakers under the leadership of Interim Head Coach Doug Christie, a long-time assistant coach and former player for the team. Christie intends to keep the pace up on offense but also has tweaks he intends to enforce to simplify things, Fox said.

LOS ANGELES —

While the surprising move by the Sacramento Kings to fire Head Coach Mike Brown was made just a day ago, the players still have a game tonight.

KCRA 3’s Michelle Dapper made the trip to Los Angeles on Saturday to catch up with the players before a pivotal game vs. the Lakers. The team gave their thoughts on the release of Brown, who helped end a 16-year playoff drought in Sacramento during the 2022-23 season.

“We all know the job that we have [in the NBA], you can be traded at any time, released, cut fired or whatever it may be,” said De’Aaron Fox. “I wouldn’t use the word guilt. Obviously with him signing his extension this summer we thought we’d be together a lot longer but that’s the decision that they made. At the end of the day he’s still getting paid, that’s the great part of [being in the NBA].”

Domantas Sabonis said he was asleep when the news broke about Brown being fired.

“He put me in a position to succeed and gave me a lot of confidence. He has helped me in my career,” Sabonis said. “It’s just part of the business, things happen that way.”

Malik Monk expressed his gratitude for Brown, the unanimous Coach of the Year in 2023.

“The energy he brought, the passion he had for the game…that’s what I took most out of him,” Monk said. “He never took anything for granted. Thank you Mike.”

The Kings are trying to end a five-game losing streak on Saturday against the Lakers under the leadership of Interim Head Coach Doug Christie, a long-time assistant coach and former player for the team.

Christie intends to keep the pace up on offense but also has tweaks he intends to enforce to simplify things, Fox said.