NBA Rumors: Sacramento Kings Hiring Patrick Ewing As Head Coach

NBA rumors are swirling around Patrick Ewing. Some head coaching vacancies are about to spring up now that the regular season has ended. Long passed over for the big jobs, Ewing is finally speaking out and letting teams in the National Basketball Association know that it is time for him to become a head coach. According to the Sacramento Bee, the Sacramento Kings might be the team to give him his first chance at running a team.

The George Karl saga came to a close with the Sacramento Kings this week. The embattled veteran coach was rumored to have been fired back when the NBA All Star weekend was taking place. For whatever reasons, general manager Vlade Divac decided to change his mind. He wanted to wait until the end of the season instead of taking the time to find a potential new coach from among the assistant coaches already on board.

The Sacramento Kings are wisely looking at a lot of options for their head coaching position. There’s some very big names out there. Jeff Van Gundy is rumored for every NBA coaching job, so his name is on the list. Tom Thibodeau is highly regarded. The Chicago Bulls fired him despite his winning ways. David Blatt had the Cleveland Cavaliers sitting on top of the Eastern Conference when he was fired.

Patrick Ewing isn’t a former NBA head coach like Jeff Van Gundy, Tom Thibodeau, and David Blatt. However, he deserves just as much of a chance to be the Sacramento Kings head coach. Ewing has spent years paying his dues as an assistant. In fact, Thibodeau and Ewing worked together on Van Gundy’s staff. Thibodeau and Van Gundy would both gladly give Ewing a recommendation. There are even those that believe that Van Gundy would drop out of the running to prevent himself from competing with a former assistant.

If the Sacramento Kings were to hire Patrick Ewing as their new head coach, they’re adding the experience and knowledge of someone that has spent close to three decades in the NBA. The former Georgetown Hoyas star was the franchise player for the New York Knicks. He has coached for the Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, Charlotte Hornets, and Washington Wizards.

Since he was a tremendous two-way player in the low post, Patrick Ewing could be of great assistance to DeMarcus Cousins. The former Kentucky Wildcats star is considered one of the most talented players in the NBA. His skills enable him to produce pretty impressive numbers. Cousins might be even better if he can learn some of the things that Ewing knows.

It’ll be interesting to see if Patrick Ewing brings some former New York Knicks players when he builds his coaching staff with the Sacramento Kings. A guy like Charles Oakley can do wonders for the defense. He was one of the best in the NBA when it comes to directing defensive rotations. DeMarcus Cousins isn’t always a committed defender, so Oakley might be able to help him figure out how to remain focused on that end of the floor.

Hiring Patrick Ewing would be quite the risk because he doesn’t have experience as a head coach. Vlade Divac might not be willing to do that because his job would be on the line. However, if Ewing works out, then Divac will look like a genius. The Sacramento Kings would certainly keep him around a bit longer if that scenario were to unfold next season.

[Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images]