Category: Sacramento Kings Blog

The Reno Bighorns today named Darrick Martin as the team’s new head coach, according to General Manager Peja Stojakovic.

Martin, 45, joins the Bighorns after spending the 2015-16 season as a radio analysist for the UCLA Men’s Basketball broadcast. Prior to starting his career in the booth, Martin spent three seasons as an assistant coach at St. John’s University, where he served under Steve Lavin.

A 13-year NBA veteran that appeared in 514 games, Martin began his NBA career with the Minnesota Timberwolves (1994-95, 2003-04) before joining the Vancouver Grizzlies (1995-96), Los Angeles Clippers (1996-99, 2004-05), Sacramento Kings (1999-01), Dallas Mavericks (2001-02) and the Toronto Raptors (2004-08). Martin joined the Minnesota Timberwolves as an assistant coach and player development specialist at the conclusion of his playing career.

Today, the Sacramento Kings unveiled a new uniform system for the 2016-17 season, featuring the team’s recently released logos.

“Our bold modern look represents our commitment to Sacramento and the pride of this region,” said Kings President Chris Granger. “Sacramento Proud will be on display at home, on the road and across the globe.”

Here is how the Kings describe their new uniforms:

The four new uniforms – home, away, global and city – showcase updated emblems and a refreshed color palate. The classic Baby Blues, worn from 1985-1990, as well as for select home games last year – will return as a part of the team’s ongoing salute to the origins of the team.

At the center of the home, away and city jerseys, the team’s new crown serves as a reminder of the foundation of the team. The city jersey proudly features Sacramento’s oft-referenced acronym – SAC – in bold granite lettering, representing the organization’s deep connection to its city.

The clean, tri-colored side stripes on the shorts – inspired by the Kansas City-era Kings – are tapered for a modern look. At the base of the shorts for all three uniforms, the city logo serves as a reminder that when you root for the Kings, you root for Sacramento.

A bold, black global jersey features the team’s global crest, a symbol of leadership and strength. The granite pattern – a continuous “S” inspired by an emblem on our city’s flag – runs horizontally through the jersey to reflect the inseparable link between the team and its community. The design runs through the shorts up to a single granite stripe, reminiscent of the team’s first black uniforms in 1994. The primary emblem on the shorts is inspired by the classic Kings logo, reimagined to reflect the civic and franchise pride that has grown over the last 31 years.

Each jersey is united by the team’s beginnings in Sacramento, as a baby blue band runs along the base of the collar, while three baby blue stiches that run perpendicular to the seam on the right side of the jersey stand for the three elements that form the soul of our franchise: our city, our pride and our foundation. At the base of the jersey, a baby blue “Sacramento Proud” tab is embedded to serve as a reminder that each jersey is more than a uniform – it is a symbol honoring our city every time the team takes the court.

Sacramento Kings Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Vlade Divac announced today that the team has hired Dave Joerger as their new head coach.

“I am thrilled to welcome Dave to the Sacramento Kings,” said Divac. “He is a strong and passionate leader with a proven track record of producing results. Dave shares our focus on creating a long-term culture of winning and I look forward to a bright future ahead for the Kings with his leadership on the court.”

Joerger joins the Kings after spending the previous three years as head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies, where he accrued a 147-99 regular season mark (.598) and guided the franchise to postseason berths in each of his seasons at the helm. Following three straight 50-win campaigns for the first time in club history (2012-13 thru 2014-15), two under Joerger, Memphis again qualified for the playoffs even after injuries forced the team to dress a league-record 28 players last season. Until then, no NBA team had reached the playoffs utilizing 24 or more athletes on its roster in a single season.

Prior to entering the NBA ranks, Joerger won accolades as one of the most successful minor league coaches in history, piloting five teams to championships in three different basketball leagues from 2000-07. Demonstrating strong player development skills, Joerger sent 18 of his players to the NBA during his time in the minor leagues. By the time he was hired by the Grizzlies as an assistant coach in 2007, Joerger had collected titles in the NBA Development League, CBA (Continental Basketball Association) and IBL (International Basketball League).

The Sacramento Kings today hired Ken Catanella as Assistant General Manager.

Catanella has more than ten years of experience in player negotiation, contracts, statistical scouting systems and a comprehensive understanding of the salary cap. He joins the Kings front office after serving the Detroit Pistons for nearly five years as Director of Basketball Operations and Assistant General Manager. Prior to the Pistons, Catanella worked for the NBA and the New Jersey Nets.

“We are focused on building a winning team and part of that process is ensuring we have a sound front office structure,” said Divac. “We are thrilled that Ken Catanella is joining the Kings to help us build on our progress and drive success on the court. Ken’s unique statistical and player expertise will provide a significant boost to our basketball operations team.”

In his role with the Kings, Catanella will function as the organization’s salary cap specialist, support Divac with personnel decisions and day-to-day management of the basketball operations department and assist with the team’s statistical and analytical systems.

A graduate of Amherst College where he played and coached, Catanella’s professional experience includes a stint on Wall Street where he provided analytics to sports franchises examining arena financing. While earning his MBA at Duke University, he served as a graduate assistant to the Blue Devils Men’s Basketball team from 2004-06. Catanella also played professional basketball for the Bundesliga’s Cologne 99ers of the German League and later served as the assistant general manager for the 99ers.

The Sacramento Kings announced today that George Karl will not be retained as head coach for the 2016-17 season, according to Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Vlade Divac.

“After evaluating the team’s performance this season, I determined it was necessary to move forward with a new voice from the head coaching position,” said Divac. “I have a great deal of respect and admiration for George and his accomplishments throughout his nearly 30 years in the NBA. On behalf of everyone in the Kings organization, I thank him for the contributions made during his time in Sacramento and wish him good fortune in the future.”

Hired on February 17, 2015, Karl compiled a 44-68 record in one and a half seasons in Sacramento. Overall, he ranks fifth all-time in NBA annals with 1,175 head coaching victories through 27 seasons in Cleveland (1984-86), Golden State (1986-88), Seattle (1991-98), Milwaukee (1998-2003), Denver (2004-2013) and Sacramento (2015-16).