Fox knows Kings must ‘keep playing' after Walton firing

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De'Aaron Fox and the Kings will have a new coach for Monday night's game against the Philadelphia 76ers, after Luke Walton was fired Sunday morning following a 6-11 start to the season.

Fox spoke to the media on Monday for the first time since Walton was dismissed, and emphasized the need to move forward.

"I mean things happen obviously and we didn't start the way we wanted to, but bit of a shock, like I said, you just have to keep pushing and keep playing," Fox told reporters Monday after shootaround.

The pressure ratcheted up on Walton in recent weeks, with chants calling for the coach's firing raining down during a blowout loss to the Toronto Raptors at Golden 1 Center on Friday.

Alvin Gentry takes over as interim coach of the Kings, after joining Walton's staff as the associate head coach prior to the 2020-21 season. Gentry has a lengthy past as an NBA head coach, holding an overall record of 510-595 (.462) over stints with five different organizations.

Fox doesn't believe there will be any major schematic changes with Gentry taking over.

"Obviously I think some things have changed, but I don't think it's going to be like a big overhaul. For us, it's just being ready to play, at the end of the day that's what matters, whether there's a change or not," Fox said.

RELATED: McNair explains Kings' decision to fire Walton after 17 games

ESPN's Kirk Goldsberry made a graphic illustrating the vast amount of turnover the Kings have had at head coach over the past 15 years, with Walton being the 10th coach to depart the role since Rick Adelman was let go in 2006.

The Gentry era begins Monday night, and we will see as the season wears on if the veteran coach gets the interim tag removed at season's end, or if general manager Monte McNair will select his own candidate.

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