Sacramento Kings: 5 things to look forward to in second half of season

2. Luke Walton might get fired

After one of the most promising seasons in recent memory, the Sacramento Kings fired head coach Dave Joerger just after the conclusion of the 2018-19 season. In the coming days, there were no coaching searches or interviews to speak of. Three days after the firing, and two days after having been fired himself, Luke Walton was brought in as the man in charge.

It has been one big struggle the entire time.

His misuse of certain players and deliberate slowing of the offensive pace hindered the Kings right off the bat, and the team lost some of its identity that it built the year before. There were reported clashes and disagreements behind the scenes, and there were multiple times when it felt like he might have lost the locker room.

If it wasn’t for a hot stretch after last year’s All-Star break, Walton might have already been fired. The Kings won 10 of 15 just before the league suspended play, and much of the success was attributed to the coach’s decision to bench Buddy Hield in favor of Bogdan Bogdanovic. The turnaround likely saved Walton’s job or at least bought him some more time.

But his seat has never been hotter than it is right now. The Kings are currently floundering and have lacked leadership and identity, and because of it, Walton’s job could be in serious jeopardy. Not only are the rumor mills working locally, but betting outlets such as BetOnline.ag have him as the odds-on favorite for the next head coach to be fired.

The hasty hire of Walton was conducted by former general manager Vlade Divac, and the new regime in town likely prefers to bring in their own guy. Alvin Gentry is a Kings assistant coach and would presumably take over in an interim role.