The Sacramento Kings fired head coach Paul Westphal on Thursday, ending a tenure that lasted only two years. The Kings had gotten off to a rocky 2-5 start with a young roster that featured former rookie of the year Tyreke Evans, second-year player DeMarcus Cousins and free agent acquisition Marcus Thornton. It was a young team, but a talented team. It seemed a lot better on paper though than what it was in practice.
The sign of trouble maybe started Sunday when the team released a statement saying Cousins had requested a trade. Westphal said at that time that Cousins had not progressed emotionally the way the team hoped and had requested a trade. Cousins’ agent vehemently refuted that his client had requested a trade.
Either way, something stank and it wasn’t just Sacramento’s 27th-ranked offensive rating and 27th-ranked defensive rating. There was turmoil in Sacramento and some change had to be made, whether it was getting rid of the player or getting rid of the coach.
Sacramento chose the coach. So assistant coach Keith Smart will take over for the time being as Sacramento prepares for its game tonight against Milwaukee.
“I want to thank Paul for all his efforts on behalf of the Kings,” Kings president Geoff Petrie said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the overall performance level of the team did not approach what we felt was reasonable to expect. I wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
Westphal accumulated a 51-120 record in two-plus season as coach. A .298 win percentage is certainly reason for a firing. The timing feels strange off the heels of the Cousins trade demand and where the team is at.
Nobody is even sure at this point if the Kings are moving forward with the announced trade request from Cousins. Cousins is averaging 13.7 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game in six games. He was held out of Sacramento’s last game because of his trade request — what now amounts to a suspension from a coach. Cousins and Westphal did not get along as Cousins’ immaturity seemed to hold back his talent.
The final straw will be the lasting memory of Westphal’s tenure in Sacramento.
Sacramento still feels like a franchise that is a mess.
Evans had a down year last season after winning rookie of the year in 2010. His scoring has declined from 20.1 points per game during his rookie year to 14.3 points per game this year and his field goal shooting from 45.8 percent to 42.0 percent (and 40.9 percent shooting last year). Their record thus tanked even further and it seems like Sacramento is continually getting worse.
Than you have the uncertainty over the stadium situation and the team’s place in Sacramento. Sacramento bought an extra year in Sacramento at Power Balance Pavilion (the former ARCO Arena), but the Kings staying in Sacramento is far from certain still.
If Sacramento does stay in California’s capitol, Westphal won’t be there. If it came down to Cousins or Westphal, the franchise picked its promising young player over the weathered coach.
This, of course, will not fix all of Sacramento’s problems.
