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After an 11-13 start to the season, the Kings fired head coach Michael Malone despite being just a half-game out of the eighth seed in the Western Conference. The Kings were without center DeMarcus Cousins for 15 games while he recovered from viral meningitis, but the team was still on pace to win 10 more games than last season and is expected to contend for a playoff spot.
Malone had “philosophical differences” with Kings management, and his defense-first mentality didn’t mesh with GM Pete D’Alessandro. Assistant coach Tyrone Corbin will fill in as an interim head coach (and former Nuggets coach George Karl is rumored to be a potential replacement), but Cousins revealed at practice that no one within the team informed him that Malone was out. He found out on Twitter.
