Struggling Sacramento Kings fire coach Mike Brown after 13-18 start to season

The Sacramento Kings fired coach Mike Brown less than halfway through his third season with the team mired in a five-game losing streak, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity Friday because the resignation had not been announced by the team. ESPN first reported the firing.

Brown won NBA Coach of the Year in his first season in 2022-23, as he helped Sacramento end the longest playoff drought in NBA history (16 seasons).

But Sacramento lost in last year’s play-in tournament and got off to a 13-18 start this season, leading to the decision to fire Brown about six months after he agreed to a contract extension through the 2026-27 season .

The Kings have lost a league-worst nine games in the NBA this season after blowing a fourth-quarter lead, the worst of which came in Brown’s final game as coach Thursday night against Detroit.

Sacramento led by 10 points with less than three minutes to play but collapsed. Jaden Ivey converted a four-point play with three seconds left when he made a 3-pointer in the right corner and was fouled by De’Aaron Fox. That gave the Pistons a 114–113 victory, leaving the Kings in 12th place in the Western Conference.

Brown has a 107-88 record in two-plus seasons in Sacramento, with a winning record in both of his full seasons. Rick Adelman is the only other coach to post a winning record in a full season since the Kings moved to Sacramento

Brown previously had two stints as coach in Cleveland and spent more than one season as Lakers coach. He has a 455-304 record and has made the playoffs in seven of his nine full seasons. He was Coach of the Year twice and also received the award in Cleveland in 2008-09.