SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KTXL) – After a week’s worth of drama surrounding the future of Mike Brown as head coach of the Sacramento Kings, both parties came to an agreement late Friday night to secure his future in the capital city.
According to multiple sources, the Kings agreed to a contract extension with Brown that will keep the 54-year-old as Sacramento’s head coach through the 2026-27 season.
Brown becomes the most recent NBA head coach to be rewarded with a lucrative contract extension. His new deal with Sacramento is worth $8.5 million per season as a base deal that could reach as much as $10 million annually because of incentives, according to sources.
Those sources spoke to FOX40 on the condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet official.
Brown would have been entering the final year on his deal with Sacramento next season, as both he and the Kings held a mutual option for the 2025-26 season.
Reports of talks stalling late last week, coupled with reported details of negotiations between Brown and the organization, became public in recent days, causing a wealth of mixed emotions for Kings fans and a wealth of emotions on social media.
Mike Brown (94-70) and Rick Adelman (395-229) are the only two head coaches to boast winning records in the Kings’ 39-year history in Sacramento.
Two seasons ago, Brown left the Warriors following their championship run (where he served as Associate Head Coach under Steve Kerr) to join the Kings as the franchise’s 21st head coach in the Sacramento era.
Brown was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year following that first season after leading Sacramento to a 48-34 record, finishing third in the Western Conference and snapping a 16-year playoff drought. In doing so, the Kings featured a potent offense led by two all-stars in De’Aaron Fox (his first all-star selection) and Domantas Sabonis, and they set a new record with the highest offensive rating in NBA history.
Sacramento would lose to Golden State in seven games, resulting in a first-round playoff exit.
The Kings took a step back this season, compiling a 46-36 overall record, two wins shy of the previous season, finishing ninth in the west. The Kings would clinch a spot in the Play-In Tournament, defeating the Warriors in their first Play-In game, but they would miss out on the postseason when they were eliminated by the New Orleans Pelicans in the next round.
While the Kings offensive dipped to 13th in the NBA in Mike Brown’s second season as head coach, Sacramento made strides on the defensive end, leaping from 24th to the 14th-best defensive rating in the league.
Before coming to the Kings, Brown served as head coach in two stints with the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he won his first NBA Coach of the Year award in 2009. He went 305-187 during his time with Cleveland. He also made a stop with the Los Angeles Lakers (42-29) as their head coach in 2011, but he was fired just five games into his second season.
Sean Cunningham
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