3 Kings who could follow Mike Brown out the door if Sacramento's season spirals

The Sacramento Kings are one of the NBA's biggest disappointments thus far. At 13-18, they currently hold the No. 12 seed in the Western Conference and are 3.0 games back of a play-in spot. For a team that rosters talented players like De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, and DeMar DeRozan, this start to their season has been shocking, and it wound up resulting in the firing of head coach Mike Brown.

Did Brown deserve to be fired? That can be debated. Brown was the NBA's Coach of the Year just two seasons ago, but the Kings had a down year in 2023-24, and have taken an even larger step back so far this season.

Clearly, the organization is not satisfied with where the team is right now record-wise. Brown was the first to go, but if things continue to go south, more members of the team can conceivably follow Brown out of the door.

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3) DeMar DeRozan hasn't proven to be a great fit with the Kings

For the most part, this Kings roster is awfully similar to the one they've had in each of the last two seasons, with one massive exception - they acquired DeMar DeRozan ahead of the 2024-25 season.

The thought process behind acquiring DeRozan made some sense. He's a floor raiser, and for a team that already has two stars, adding a player like DeRozan, in theory, would've made them a playoff lock, even in a tough Western Conference. Unfortunately, while DeRozan is averaging 20.7 points per game while shooting 48 percent from the field, his flaws stick out.

DeRozan, while he operates efficiently in the mid-range, is a putrid three-point shooter. He's shot just 30.9 percent from behind the arc this season. Adding him into a lineup that already includes Fox and Sabonis - two average to below-average shooters - makes it a strange basketball fit for the modern game. Shooters like Keegan Murray and Kevin Huerter having down years from behind the arc doesn't help matters either.

Another reason why DeRozan was brought in was because of his ability to finish games as one of the league's best clutch scorers. The Kings have lost time and time again in close games late.

While it isn't his fault only that the team is where they are, you can't help but point at him as a reason why they've taken a step back when he's the only major addition to this team. Finding a taker might be tough for the 35-year-old who is under control for another two seasons after this one, but if the Kings can, they might benefit from it.

2) Kevin Huerter's contract can help the Kings land a key contributor

Two seasons ago, Kevin Huerter played a huge role in Sacramento's emergence. He averaged 15.2 points per game and was one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA, shooting 40.2 percent on 6.8 attempts per game. He took a step back as a shooter last season, but at least shot at 36.1 percent from downtown - roughly league-average. This season, he's had his worst showing by far from three-point range.

Huerter is shooting a career-low 31.2 percent from downtown while also averaging a career-low 9.2 points per game. His struggles led the team to insert Malik Monk into the starting lineup to take his place.

Based on how he's played, the 26-year-old won't have much value at all on the trade market. He is, however, making $16.8 million this season and $17.9 million next season, making him valuable on the trade market nonetheless. His salary can be used to match with other players that the Kings attempt to bring in to try and turn their season around.

1) De'Aaron Fox's Kings future is murky at best

The question on the mind of every Kings fan is, what does De'Aaron Fox think of the decision to fire Brown? Recently, Fox's agent, Rich Paul, met with Sacramento's front office to discuss their direction. Obviously, this wouldn't be happening if Fox was thrilled with what was transpiring in Sacramento.

It's entirely possible that Brown's future was a topic of discussion during Paul's meeting with Sacramento's leadership group. If Fox wanted Brown to be fired, the Kings have reason to acquiesce, knowing how gifted of a player Fox is.

Firing Brown might please Fox in the short term, but what if the Kings continue down this downward spiral? What if Fox ends up believing it wasn't Brown's fault that the team is underperforming? Would that be met with an official trade request?

Chances are, the Kings won't move Fox without him asking out, but if the team continues to struggle, the odds of Fox officially asking out would likely increase. Hopefully, Brown's firing can lead to enough wins to keep Fox content with where things are with the organization.