4 coaches who could replace George Karl in Sacramento
The Sacramento Kings will reportedly fire George Karl on Thursday, one day after their season comes to an end. This news shouldn't surprise anybody. Karl's relationship with the organization never existed on hard ground, and his connection with All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins was combustable from day one.
If/when the Kings finally move on from Karl, who holds a .396 winning percentage in 111 games with the team, who should replace him?
There is no obvious answer because nobody in their right mind would be super pumped about taking the job. The Kings reside in the NBA's sewer. They exude zero leadership or rationale from ownership, and their front office is confused by the most basic decisions. There's no direction or strategy in place. They're stand-up comedy on a basketball court.
But, in a world where there are only 30 head coaching positions, someone will reluctantly jump into the fray and do their best with an opportunity to make a toxic situation slightly less so.
Here are four semi-logical candidates:
4) Mike D'Antoni: The Kings were the fastest team in the league this season. They had an above-average offense and ranked in the top 10 in three-point percentage. D'Antoni can build on that! Forget about the fact that running up and down the court probably won't work long term on a team that's build around a plodding center; if Sacramento truly wants to embrace an analytics-heavy playing style that leans on pace and space, who better to hire as their coach? (Also: Never underestimate a desperate candidate.)
3) John Calipari: Aside from getting to coach Cousins and Willie Cauley-Stein once again, why would Calipari take this job? In all likelihood, he'd have zero leverage with Sacramento's front office and no say in personnel decisions. If the Kings made him the highest-paid basketball coach in the world, would that be enough? (Maybe.) Would he be worth it? (Of course not.)
2) David Blatt: After how things went down with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, it's safe to say that Blatt needs to re-shingle his reputation. What better way to do that than lead Sacramento to the playoffs? The man knows how to build a defense, as he proved before Cleveland dumped him. And the Kings would potentially be an eight-seed this season if they executed some semblance of a defensive system at least once every week. There's talent, length and athleticism in place. Let Blatt mold the clay and see what happens. (Related: If Blatt is actually hired, there's a 200 percent chance he and Boogie try to poison each other by the second day of training camp.)
I love my time here in Sacramento. Thank you https://t.co/MzBzaOupec
— Nancy Lieberman (@NancyLieberman) April 12, 2016
1) Nancy Lieberman: To many, it'd be amazing if Lieberman became the first female head coach in NBA history. As it should. She's well qualified, has already built relationships within the Kings organization and clearly knows the game. But the optics in front of this hire wouldn't be great, and that's sad. Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé is more concerned with perception and faux-progressiveness than he is with building a solid basketball culture. Worse yet, as a first-year head coach, Lieberman wouldn't be in a situation to succeed. Pending their offseason, which could/should have a taint "The Purge" resemblance, the Kings will be terrible again next season, and Lieberman may not last much longer than that.
All that aside, her hire would be worth celebrating.
