Report: George Karl described Kings owner Vivek Ranadive as overachieving immigrant who believes instincts are infallible

George Karl reportedly removed the most of the Kings portion from his new book after he and Sacramento, which fired him as coach, reached a contract settlement.

But some of his thoughts on the Kings – including owner Vivek Ranadive and star DeMarcus Cousins – are leaking.

Carmichael Dave of KHTK Sports 1140:

For a guy worried about players in the spotlight,interesting that Karl made about 15 million for a year's worth of coaching and wrote a book

— Carmichael Dave (@CarmichaelDave) December 23, 2016

Karl on Vivek: "An immigrant who's success in the US was beyond what he could've imagined, so he believes his instincts are infallible."

— Carmichael Dave (@CarmichaelDave) December 23, 2016

Karl on DMC: Wasn't physically fit, had to call fatigue timeouts. "The most disrespectful person I'd ever been around". Wanted him traded.

— Carmichael Dave (@CarmichaelDave) December 23, 2016

Only one NBA owner earned his fortune through basketball – Michael Jordan. And Jordan struggled running a team for years precisely because he thought his instincts were infallible. Even Jordan’s on-court excellence didn’t directly translate to management and ownership. Jordan had to learn how to do his new job.

This is a problem with so many rich people, that they believe their (or their family’s) success in a particular field at a particular time prepares them to thrive in every situation. It’s something nearly all, or maybe even all, NBA owners deal with, whether they know it or not.

That Karl links it to the Indian-born Ranadive being an immigrant is off-putting, at best. It also shouldn’t be tremendously surprising given that Karl judged Carmelo Anthony, Kenyon Martin and J.R. Smith based on stereotypes before even meeting them.

To be fair, perhaps Karl’s statements would look different in context – and maybe we’ll eventually find out.

Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee:

Though an early draft detailing Karl’s brief tenure with the Kings was released to several outlets, the book includes less than two pages about his experiences in Sacramento. His plan is to dissect his troubled relationship with DeMarcus Cousins, his disappointment in general manager Vlade Divac, and his outright disdain for principal owner Vivek Ranadive in an updated version when his contract expires.

If that happens, bet that those who worked with Karl on the Kings will react similarly to the former Nuggets who lashed out at their old coach .

Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee:

Karl’s issues with DeMarcus Cousins were well documented, but what many didn’t see was how the rest of the players and others in the organization were irked by Karl or how his perceived arrogance made team employees feel he was belittling them.

Players bonded with assistant coaches, but the chasm between the roster and Karl was evident.

Karl’s candor with the media rankled players, especially when they believed Karl was loose with the facts. Never mind Rudy Gay being upset with being called overweight, how do you think the training staff that worked with him reacted to hearing that, feeling Gay was not overweight?

Singling out quiet players who were reluctant to fire back was another concern, such as comparing former King Derrick Williams to a vending machine.

“Why does he have to be such a (jerk)?” one player asked after hearing some of Karl’s comments last season.