The Kings are about to miss the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season and a coaching change appears to be on the horizon, but ownership knows who it wants calling the shots going forward.
Vlade Divac has signed a multiyear contract extension as vice president of basketball operations and general manager, the team announced Wednesday. The former NBA big man is expected to bring on an executive with more experience — former Pacers and Bucks official David Morway is the apparent favorite — in an attempt to free the franchise from its decade-long drought.
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"I know that we have what it takes to be a successful franchise and I look forward to continuing to improve and build on the progress that we’ve made,” Divac said in a release.
Kings owner Vivek Ranadive brought Divac into the front office in March 2015 and added GM duties to his slate in August. Divac came on board shortly after George Karl replaced the fired Michael Malone and interim Tyrone Corbin as Sacramento's coach, but their partnership has not appeared smooth from the outside.
Reports circulated just before this season's All-Star break that Karl was on the verge of being fired, but Divac decided to retain the veteran coach after a lengthy meeting, saying in a release that he and Karl were "collectively working through our issues."
Karl has reportedly been at odds with DeMarcus Cousins for months, and the team suspended the center for one game earlier this month after a confrontation with Karl.
Change appears likely in Sacramento this offseason, and Divac will soon be even more securely positioned to make whatever calls need to be made.
