These are anxious times in Sacramento. Not only is their ace De’Aaron Fox becoming a target of the trade fever, but just hours ago, the franchise made a shocking decision. They decided to fire Mike Brown, the head coach who helped break a 16-year postseason curse. This comes amidst the Kings’ five-game losing streak at home. And it seems the former Coach of the Year might have addressed some of the players before his departure. A clip of which is now doing the rounds on social media.

In particular, a moment he shared with Fox during their last practice is quickly going viral. Brown could be seen having a long conversation with the 27-year-old. What they spoke about isn’t known. Yet, it comes just a day after Mike publicly blasted the pacy point guard for his costly error against the Pistons, which led to the Kings’ fifth straight loss.

Although the recent happenings have put questions on their relationship, so far Brown has always subjected Fox to high expectations. Most recently, the veteran coach even admitted to feeling “Fox can be one of the best two-way guys to play in the NBA”.

Furthermore, De’Aaron Fox has arguably played the most advanced basketball under Mike Brown. Even this year, he’s been the sole consistent beacon for the Kings, averaging 26.2 points and 6.1 assists.

For Sacramento, though, it comes down to the team’s inability to mesh with the new group. With the introduction of DeMar DeRozan, their offense did welcome an additional threat. But at the same time, the core of the system also changed. Mike Brown had a tough time adjusting to the introduced dynamic, with the Sacramento Kings having lost 12 of their 17 games.

Still, the blame should not be directed only at the head coach. The Kings have lost games from winning positions more often than not. As much as Mike Brown could have made tactical errors, such an embarrassing run obviously requires shared responsibility.

Sacramento has lost nine games while leading in the fourth quarter, just like they did in the loss to the Pistons. While pundits would have wanted Brown to yield better results, it’s hard to argue that he failed to put them in such situations.

Top Comment by G1C

Its true Mike Brown lost control of the team this year…team didn’t listen his coaching instructions and respect him…Coach...more

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Debate

De’Aaron Fox once appreciated the demands set on him by Mike Brown

A team’s foundational star and head coach need to have a healthy working relationship. With Brown’s recent comments on Fox, that came under question. Many on social media suspect that De’Aaron might’ve had a hand in the firing of the head coach, who was only in his third season with Sactown. Going off the recent events and joining the dots is a straightforward doorway to such a conclusion.

However, whenever Fox speaks about his former coach, there is always a tone of admiration. From the time Brown stepped into the building, he set a high bar for the team, especially Fox.

Viewing him as the talisman, the 2023 COTY levied great pressure on the 27-year-old to become the essence of the team, eventually the cream of the crop in the NBA. In his first year, his intensity saw Sacramento move from the 12th seed to the third seed. Since then, contending has become the norm. And De’Aaron Fox acknowledges that without Brown’s tenacity, that might not have been the case.

“My whole life I played for coaches that would get on you [for almost] every little thing… So whenever we got Mike and that’s the way he was from the first day of training camp, I’m like ‘Okay this is going to be different.’ And obviously, the talent was a lot better in the arena, but I don’t know if we do that without Mike… Even with the same team,” he said of Mike Brown last September.

Obviously, a year is a long time for bonds to be damaged. But it is hard to see such respect fade away so easily. If it were up to a personal guess, this doesn’t seem to be a decision led by the star point guard. Rather, it was an unfortunate call made by Vivek Ranadive because of the distress the organization is currently experiencing. With Fox’s name being dabbled in trade talks, Evan Sidery does point out “This is seemingly a decision to appease Fox amidst pressure from his agent, Rich Paul”

So, Mike Brown may not have met the expectations this season. However, looking back at his short tenure with the Sacramento Kings, the mentality switch heavily alludes to his meticulous and demanding approach. What do you think?