Source: Sacramento Kings hire veteran NBA assistant to join Luke Walton’s coaching staff
The Kings had a couple of positions to fill on Luke Walton’s coaching staff after defensive coordinator Rex Kalamian left to join the Detroit Pistons and assistant coach Jesse Mermuys left to join the Orlando Magic.
The Kings filled one of those vacancies earlier this month when they hired Doug Christie as an assistant coach. They filled the other Monday with the addition of Mike Longabardi, a veteran NBA assistant with previous experience as a defensive coordinator.
The Kings are hiring Longabardi to serve as a front-of-bench assistant, a league source told The Sacramento Bee, confirming a report from The Athletic’s Sam Amick and Shams Charania. Longabardi has been an NBA assistant since 2003. He was a part of NBA championship teams with the Boston Celtics in 2008 and Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.
Longabardi, 48, grew up in Brooklyn and played basketball at Newberry College, where he was known as “Mr. Defense.” He graduated from Frostburg State and began his coaching career in the college ranks with stints at Pfeiffer, Adelphi, Lafayette and Towson.
Longabardi broke into the NBA as an assistant with the Houston Rockets from 2003-07. He went on to serve as an assistant with the Celtics (2007-13), where he was promoted to full-time defensive coordinator in 2009. He had later stints with the Phoenix Suns (2013-15) and Cavaliers (2016-19), where he again worked as the team’s defensive coordinator, before spending the past two seasons with the Washington Wizards.
Longabardi has worked under several head coaches, including Jeff Van Gundy, Doc Rivers, Tom Thibodeau, Jeff Hornacek, Tyronn Lue and Scott Brooks.
