Malik Monk Found Out About Mike Brown’s Shocking Firing Just Like the Rest of Us

Monk revealed his reaction to Brown's shocking firing.

Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown and guard Malik Monk. / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk found about the firing of head coach Mike Brown like nearly everyone else—through social media. The Kings shockingly fired Brown over the phone right after he held a practice with the team on Friday, and Monk first learned about the news through X (formerly Twitter).

"I've seen it on Twitter," Monk said Saturday. "I think like everybody else did."

Malik Monk reacts to the Kings firing Mike Brown, his message to Kings fans, what he'll miss about his former head coach and thanks him after experiencing the best years of his career.

"The energy he brought, the passion he had for the game ... that's what I took most out of… pic.twitter.com/C1orHmPzlc

— Sean Cunningham (@SeanCunningham) December 28, 2024

Monk shared that he was shocked initially when he heard the news, but understands that anything can happen in the business.

Brown's firing came after the Kings started the season 13–18, and lost their fifth consecutive game on Thursday. The story of the season so far had been the Kings losing 13 games in clutch time, with Thursday's blown lead in a loss to the Detroit Pistons summing up their struggles in late game situations.

Still, Brown led the team to their first postseason berth in 17 years in 2023 and won the NBA Coach of the Year unanimously. A season ago, the Kings nearly made the playoffs again, but were eliminated during the play-in tournament. Even if the Kings have the success they wanted to start the season, it's clear he had an impact on the team and culture.

"The energy he brought, the passion he had for the game, the passion he had just being on the basketball court, that's what I took most out of him," Monk said of Brown's impact. 'He never took anything for granted, and yeah, thank you, Mike."

Domantas Sabonis and De'Aaron Fox also spoke about Brown's firing Saturday. "He trusted me in my career," Sabonis said. "He put me in a position to succeed and gave me a lot of confidence. He's helped me for my career in the NBA. It's just part of the business, you know, things happen that way."

"Obviously him signing his extension this summer, we thought we would be together a whole lot longer," Fox said. "But that’s the decision that they made."

The Kings will now move forward with interim head coach Doug Christie leading the team, but Monk left Sacramento fans with one final vow: "Sorry fans, we're going to turn this around."

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