As the Sacramento Kings continue their brutal season, questions are starting to brew around Doug Christie and whether he's the right head coach to lead the team through a tough rebuild. The Kings need to take a long look at replacing him, specifically with former Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Thibs has been coaching in the NBA since 1989, when he started as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Timberwolves. His first head coach position was with the Chicago Bulls for the 2010-2011 season. Thibodeau's work there earned him his first NBA Coach of the Year Award.
He would earn his second with the New York Knicks, where he served as head coach from 2020 to 2025. Much like former Kings' head coach Mike Brown, Thibs was unceremoniously fired after doing great work for the team and making them relevant for the first time in a long time.
Thibodeau is now working as a consultant for different NBA teams. He coached the Boston Celtics to an NBA Championship in 2008, as well as leading the Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals in 25 years. Despite that, the Knicks still let him go shortly after the season ended.
Tom Thibodeau could be exactly who the Kings need
Given the performance of the Kings so far this season, the effectiveness of Christie's coaching style has to be called into question. Based on his recent post-game media comments, even he is starting to question his own capabilities to do the job well. He's losing confidence, and that's not good.
On the other hand, Thibs is one of the most experienced and respected coaches in the league. He's a two-time Coach of the Year, has coached a team to the NBA Championship, and is the fastest head coach in the league to reach 100 victories. The man knows how to build winning teams.
That's a long way of saying he is battle-tested and battle-proven. All due respect to Doug Christie, but he does not have a resume even close to what Thibodeau does. Christie is focused on building the defense at the cost of the offense, but that doesn't actually mean he knows how to build a defense.
Christie is in his first full year as a head coach, tasked with dragging a dog of a team out of the gutter. Honestly, he's been put in a no-win situation. To make this rebuild work, the Kings are going to need an experienced coach who can create a winner in charge. It's time to call Thibs in.