When Scott Perry first addressed the media after being named the Sacramento Kings' new general manager, he said that there would be a decision on Doug Christie's status with the team within the next week or so.
On Tuesday, we finally got that decision, as it was announced that Christie would get his interim tag removed and would officially become the head coach of the Kings.
The Sacramento Kings and interim coach Doug Christie are finalizing a multiyear contract to make Christie the franchise's next head coach, sources tell ESPN. Christie's agent, Andy Miller of Klutch Sports, negotiated a new deal for the Kings' full-time job this week. pic.twitter.com/OKdBWxszVm
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 29, 2025
As the general manager, transactions like this fall under Perry's jurisdiction. However, it seems like this outcome is exactly what the co-owner and chairman of the team, Vivek Ranadive, wanted to happen
Ranadive wanted Christie to be the Kings' head coach
On Monday, NBA Insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer released a new edition of their highly-coveted intel-based substack. For people affiliated with the Kings, one of the biggest revolutions from the post was that a major reason Perry got the job as general manager was because of his willingness to see eye-to-eye with Ranadive (something that seemed to be an issue during Monte McNair's tenure).
Anyway, it is well known that Ranadive is a big fan of Christie. So, the fact that Christie is now getting a multi-year extension to be the team's head coach indicates that Ranadive had some influence over Perry and this decision.
To be fair to Christie, this promotion wasn't merely a result of the former player being on Ranadive's good side. Christie made the most of what was a tumultuous situation to be thrown into in the middle of the season.
After dismissing head coach Mike Brown following a 13-18 start to the season, the Kings made Christie their interim leader. Prior to this role change, Christie had been an assistant coach on the team since 2021.
Christie responded to his opportunity by going 27-24 in 51 games. This figure was significantly better than the win percentage Brown had put together to start the season. But still, Christie failed to get the Kings out of the NBA Play-In Tournament. So, it is not like he knocked the ball out of the park in his chance.
Christie will now get a full offseason to install his concepts and principles and fully prepare for his duties as a head coach. Perry will also have a chance to reshape the roster and give the team a sense of direction it is currently sorely lacking.
How will Christie do as the team's official head coach? That remains to be seen. But at least we know that he will be getting the chance to really show what he is made of.
Before becoming a head coach, Christie spent 15 seasons in the NBA as a player – four and a half of those seasons with the Kings.