Walton joined the show on Thursday to go over the ups and downs of the regular season and share his thoughts on the future of the team

Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton joined The Jason Ross & Doug Christie Show on Thursday afternoon to recap a rollercoaster 2020-21 season, discuss the importance of the upcoming offseason and much more.

There was a lot of speculation on Walton’s future over the final weeks of the regular season, as the Kings limped across the finish-line of what was the franchise’s 15th-consecutive season without postseason basketball.

Sacramento general manager Monte McNair revealed early this week that Walton, who is under contract for two more seasons, will in fact return as the team’s head coach in 2021-22.

On returning for a third year as coach of the Kings, Walton shared his optimistic thoughts on the road ahead for the team.

“I was always planning on (being brought back). Monte and I have developed a very good working relationship and vision for where this team has to go,” Walton said. “There is a lot of really good progress that happened this year. Unfortunately, a lot of the times when you’re building something, you don’t automatically see the results that you want right away from a standpoint of wins and losses…We are disappointed that we did not make the postseason this year. That is one of our big goals and we know that this city is waiting for it and they have been waiting for it for a long time. That’s going to be another top goal for us next year…It’s about doing the work.”

Just a few days ago, star guard De’Aaron Fox told the media that he supports Walton as head coach during his end-of-season press conference:

“It’s little things, but people can say whatever they want,” Fox said on Tuesday. “We know how we feel about each other inside of this organization and we know what we should be able to do.”

On having the support of his players, Walton emphasized that he will have his players back as long as they are in his locker room.

“I’m going to put in every ounce of work and all of the effort I can to make this thing work, and I’m here for them. I want them to feel the same way about me and my staff and our team. I think that that’s a good sign to see that type of togetherness.”

To listen to the entire interview with Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton, click the “play” button on the audio file located at the top of this page.

For full episodes of The Jason Ross & Doug Christie Show, click here.

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