Kings hire Theus to coach team

Sacramento ended a
two-month search for
a coach.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Sacramento Kings reached an agreement in principle Tuesday with Reggie Theus to become their new coach, ending a meandering two-month search for Eric Musselman’s replacement.

Kings spokesman Troy Hanson said the club plans to introduce Theus, the New Mexico State coach and a former Kings player, at a news conference Wednesday.

The Kings’ search progressed slowly and deliberately after the club’s first losing season since 1998. Sacramento nearly hired Stan Van Gundy two weeks ago before he chose the Orlando Magic, while veteran coach Larry Brown recently expressed interest in the opening.

The Kings instead chose Theus, a well-liked 13-year NBA veteran — though he has almost as much experience playing a coach on television as in real life.

Theus, who transformed the New Mexico State program into an NCAA tournament club in just two seasons on the Aggies’ sideline, has never coached in the NBA.

Fired after one year

Musselman was fired April 20 after one season that began with his arrest on a drunken-driving charge. The former Golden State coach coaxed just 33 victories from a fractured locker room filled with grumpy veterans — most of whom are under contract for next season.

Kings assistant coach Scott Brooks, and Los Angeles Lakers assistants Brian Shaw and Kurt Rambis also got second interviews with Sacramento owners Joe and Gavin Maloof, who reportedly picked Musselman after the coach wowed the brothers in an interview last summer — just as Theus apparently did last Friday at the Maloofs’ casino in Las Vegas.

Theus will leave New Mexico State after a historic two-year run. The long-suffering Aggies finished 25-9 last season, capping the NCAA’s biggest turnaround in the past two seasons by winning the WAC tournament and playing in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1999.

No communication

Theus did not answer his cell phone Tuesday evening, and New Mexico State athletics department spokesman Tyler Dunkel said he could not immediately comment on the Kings’ announcement.

Theus brought excitement and credibility to the Aggies, whose fans packed the Pan American Center, and landed recruits including Herb Pope, a 6-foot-9 star from Pennsylvania.

After Theus interviewed for the Charlotte Bobcats’ vacancy last month, the school rewarded him last month with a new long-term contract worth $466,000 per season, making him the WAC’s highest-paid coach.

But Theus’ skills and style — his players called him “Hollywood” because of his designer suits and preening poses on the sideline — along with his winning record and Sacramento roots appealed to the Maloofs and Geoff Petrie, the Kings’ top executive.