Jackson, Brown are Kings' two primary candidates, Amick says

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The Kings haven’t yet made a decision on their next head coach, but two primary finalists have emerged, according to The Athletic’s Sam Amick.

And both have ties to the Warriors. Amick reported that former Warriors coach Mark Jackson and current associate coach Mike Brown are at the top of the list for the position, describing a “surreal scene” on Saturday as Kings owner Vivek Ranadive was at Game 3 between the Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies at Chase Center. 

Both Brown and Jackson were at the game -- Brown obviously tending to his coaching duties and Jackson broadcasting the game on ABC.

According to Amick, neither man was offered the job as of Saturday night, nor were they aware that Ranadive was going to be in attendance at the Warriors game. The report also indicated that another candidate, Steve Clifford -- the former Charlotte Hornets and Orlando Magic coach -- appears to be a “distant third” in the race.

The Kings’ apparent decision between Jackson and Brown will be an interesting one. Sacramento has lacked stability since Ranadive bought the franchise in 2013, as his next hire will be his seventh head coach in that span. 

Jackson hasn’t coached since the Warriors fired him in 2014, but knows Ranadive from the Kings’ owner’s time as a minority owner of the Warriors before he bought his own team. Brown, meanwhile, has a long pedigree coaching in the NBA and has served as Steve Kerr’s right hand man on the bench since 2016.

Jackson has reportedly also interviewed for the Los Angeles Lakers’ vacant head coach position, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.

Related: Report: Dumars left Kings after front-office proposal denied

The Kings are in the midst of another coaching search after firing Luke Walton midseason and not retaining interim coach Alvin Gentry after the season. Both coaches coincidentally also have previous ties to the Warriors’ coaching tree.

The connections to the Warriors probably don’t matter to Kings fans, who likely just want a coach who can bring consistent success to a franchise in sore need of it. 

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