Report: D’Antoni, Jackson Among Those That Will Interview For Kings Head Coaching Position

The Sacramento Kings have started to ramp up its search for a new head coach.

According to Shams Charania and Sam Amick of The Athletic, Sacramento will interview Mike D’Antoni and Mark Jackson for the open head coaching position.

Along with D’Antoni and Jackson, Kings general manager Monte McNair also has received permission to interview a bevy of assistant coaches from around the league: Golden State Warriors assistant coach Mike Brown, Brooklyn Nets consultant Steve Clifford, Milwaukee Bucks assistant coaches Darvin Ham and Charles Lee, and Boston Celtics assistant coach Will Hardy.

The Sacramento Kings will interview Mike D‘Antoni and Mark Jackson for their head coaching job, among over a handful of total candidates, sources tell me and @sam_amick. Kings have done background on vast majority of available coaches and narrowed to small group.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 22, 2022

ESPN Sources: The Sacramento Kings have secured permission to interview several assistants for their head coaching job, including Golden State’s Mike Brown, Brooklyn consultant Steve Clifford, Milwaukee’s Darvin Ham and Charles Lee, and Boston’s Will Hardy.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 22, 2022

Following an NBA-record 16th-consecutive season without a postseason appearance, the Kings will shift their attention toward securing a head coach that can bring this team over the nearly two-decades-long hump of mediocrity.

D’Antoni, a coach with 16 seasons of head coaching experience, last coached during the 2019-20 season when he led the Houston Rockets to the Western Conference semifinals.

Jackson’s name has been long mentioned in Kings head coaching rumors, dating back as far as 2013 before Michale Malone was hired.

The former Golden State Warriors coach has not secured a head coaching job since being dismissed in 2014, but Jackson has interviewed for several positions over the years and is known to be eyeing a return to the sideline.

According to James Ham of The Kings Beat, interviews will be conducted virtually beginning next week. Candidates will travel to Sacramento for in-person interviews following the first round of interviews.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported on Friday that McNair is “expected to expedite the opening of the interview process soon”, and the organization will proceed to narrow a list for follow-up discussions on the job.

Following Alvin Gentry’s dismissal after the 2021-22 season, the Kings are looking for some stability at the head coaching position after running through four coaches over the past seven seasons.

Since Hall of Fame head coach Rick Adelman’s final season with the franchises in 2006, Sacramento has gone through 11 head coaches over 16 years.

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