Former Knicks Guard Named Kings Interim Coach

A former member of the New York Knicks is now leading one of the benches in the NBA.

“Doug Christie is expected to be the Sacramento Kings’ interim head coach, sources tell ESPN. Christie has been an assistant with the Kings since 2021-22 and played in Sacramento for five of his 15 NBA seasons,” NBA insider Shams Charania tweeted.

Christie, 54, played 15 seasons in the NBA after he was the No. 17 overall pick in the 1992 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. However, he never played a game for the franchise and was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers before making his pro debut.

Shortly after the Knicks went to the 1994 NBA Finals, they acquired Christie from the Lakers in exchange for a pair of second-round picks. Christie made his debut for the Knicks on Dec. 27, 1994, 30 years to the day where he was named the interim head coach following the firing of Mike Brown.

During his time with the Knicks, Christie participated in the 1996 NBA Slam Dunk competition during All-Star Weekend in San Antonio. However, he didn’t play very much, which led to his trade to the Toronto Raptors.

That’s when Christie’s career began to take off. With an opportunity to play, Christie made the most of his time with the expansion Raptors. Christie saw the rebuild through, making it to the playoffs with Toronto in 2000.

That summer, Christie was dealt to the Kings, where he spent five years as the team’s starting shooting guard. Christie was part of the team that made it to the 2002 Western Conference Finals, which is arguably the best team in Kings franchise history.

Now, the Kings are calling upon him again to help their franchise get to the next level.

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