It's been a while since fans have heard much about the coaching staff for the Sacramento Kings. The rebuild has to take place across the franchise. Recently, the Kings announced several changes to that staff, including the addition of several new names to this group.
After the firing of Mike Brown in late 2024 and the official hiring of Doug Christie in early 2025, the coaching staff has been relatively stable for the Kings. Over the year and a half since Christie became the bench boss, there have been a few changes in both arrivals and departures.
September 14, 2026 is the biggest overhaul of the coaching staff since the rebuild began. Some of it is a reshuffling of existing staff while new hires have also been brought in. It's the kind of adjustments a rebuilding team should be making when going into training camp.
Meet the Kings' upgraded coaching staff
One of the biggest changes has been for D.J. Ham. After spending the last season as the head of player development, Ham has been promoted to assistant coach under Christie. This, in turn, opened the door for Joe Ajike to be hired on to replace Ham as the head of player development.
Jason Maxiell, who has been coaching in the G League with the Stockton Kings, got the call to move up to the big show. He'll be stepping into the player development coach role, which is going to be a big job considering how many rookies and sophomores are on the current roster.
On top of all of that, the Kings also hired Brendan Suhr as an assistant coach and brought in Imhotep “Tap” George as a coaching associate. All in all, it's a lot of changes for this staff in what seems like a very short period of time, but they are all important changes to this roster.
The rebuild is everywhere on the Kings
For this rebuild project to be successful for Sacramento, it has to influence all aspects of the organization. Of course, that starts with the players on the roster. It's safe to say that Scott Perry has managed to make significant changes to the team while working around their larger contracts.
That process has to include the coaching staff. The rut the Kings have been stuck in for the last two decades isn't just about the players. Who is coaching, developing, and guiding them matters, as well. Updating their coaching staff to achieve their goals is just as important as updating the roster.
And just like the players, some of these new coaching additions might not work. Part of the rebuild is not being afraid to admit when someone just isn't panning out. Regardless, it's good to see the Kings making upgrades to their coaching staff as well as their roster.
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