“Sacramento Kings Make Swift Decision: GM Monte McNair Ousted Post-Playoff Exit”

In the swirling vortex of Sacramento Kings’ drama, the recent descent from the hopeful rebirth of a storied franchise to the depths of organizational chaos has left fans, players, and indeed, yours truly, in utter disbelief. It seems like only yesterday we were celebrating the breaking of a heart-wrenching 16-year playoff drought, and now, here we are, discussing the abrupt exit of our much-celebrated GM, Monty McNair, who less than a year ago was lifting the NBA Executive of the Year award.

The real gut punch came when the Kings were unceremoniously booted from the postseason by the Dallas Mavericks, a game which in my view, underscored not just the team’s fall from grace but a catastrophic tactical blunder. I’ve seen teams rise and fall, but the speed at which Sacramento plunged from a story of redemption to one of disappointment is… well, it’s something else.

And now, amidst this turmoil, I find myself pondering the future. McNair’s departure leaves a void in leadership, a critical vacuum in a team that’s seen enough turmoil to fill a season’s worth of soap operas. Owner Vivek Ranadive has his work cut out for him: replacing a man who was pivotal in turning the Kings’ fortunes around, deciding if Doug Christie should step up to lead without the interim title, and, critically, managing the expectations and contract situations of players like Zach LaVine and our very own All-Star Domantas Sabonis.

As a fan and a former coach, I feel the pain of Kings’ supporters who thought the beam would stay lit far longer than it has. The echoes of disappointment might linger, but hope, as they say, springs eternal. And so does the intrigue of what Sacramento will do next. This summer’s not just long; it’s going to be consequential. Watching how the franchise navigates its way through this mess will be, to put it mildly, riveting. LEARN MORE.

This season was a massive step back for the Kings. They had entered the season with internal expectations of making the playoffs, and last summer inked coach Mike Brown to an extension, with the support of All-Star guard De’Aaron Fox. However, Fox himself didn’t sign an extension, keeping pressure on the organization to win and be consistent (the things that mattered to him). Those wins did not come, and after a 13-18 start to the season with a number of clutch losses — and Brown throwing his players under the bus in several press conferences — McNair decided he needed to do something. So he fired Brown.All of it sucks for Kings fans, who thought they had seen their team come out of a long dark ages to light the beam and make the playoffs, only to have the whole thing fall apart within a couple of years. It will be a long summer for them in the California capital and maybe a rough one for Kings fans.
It took less than an hour after the Kings were summarily dismissed from the postseason by the Mavericks — an ugly ending to the end of a messy season in Sacramento that saw the franchise take a step backwards.McNair had been voted NBA executive of the year by his peers in 2023, the year he helped build a team that won 48 games and snapped the franchise’s NBA-record 16-year playoff drought. Under McNair, the Kings had a .488 winning percentage, which is not ideal but looks good compared to the .362 win percentage the 15 years prior.McNair’s exit is the latest example of how fast things have fallen off in Sacramento. In 2023, the Kings were one of the best stories in the NBA. However, while the Kings stood pat after that season (betting on internal growth that would never come as they hoped), the rest of the West made moves, got better, and passed the Kings. Sacramento fell to just 46 wins in 2024, but that only earned them the No. 9 seed, and they did not make it out of the play-in.

The Kings and GM Monty McNair have agreed to part ways, a story broken by Sam Amick of The Athletic and confirmed by multiple reports. The Kings have yet to release an official statement on the move.Now McNair is gone, too. Fox and Brown had a strong relationship, and the firing did not sit well with the star guard. Also, the Kings were not winning or showing consistency — the standards Fox had set — which led to him requesting a trade and ultimately being sent to San Antonio. Doug Christie took over the head coaching job, and while the team’s luck changed in a few close games, the overall situation did not improve. Particularly the defense, which was exposed by Dallas when Sacramento was knocked out of the Play-In Tournament Wednesday night.That leaves owner Vivek Ranadive facing some big questions this offseason: Who should be hired as the new head of basketball operations to replace McNair? Should Doug Christie have the interim tag removed and become the full-time head coach (he was 27-24 in the role), or is it time to bring in a new coach from the outside? Do they want to extend Zach LaVine’s contract? On top of that, All-Star Domantas Sabonis wants to meet with management because he has questions about the franchise’s direction and his future in it. If Sabonis asks for a trade, what does that leave players such as Malik Monk or DeMar DeRozan?