Kings great Bobby Jackson leaving organization to join Philadelphia 76ers coaching staff
Kings great Bobby Jackson will be back on an NBA bench next season, but not in Sacramento, the city he has called home for most of the past 23 years.
Jackson, who spent the past two seasons as head coach of the G League Stockton Kings, is leaving the organization to join Nick Nurse’s coaching staff with the Philadelphia 76ers, as first reported by Marc Stein.
Jackson, 50, is one of the most beloved figures in Kings franchise history. He played for Sacramento from 2000-05 and again in 2008-09.
Jackson spent five seasons with the Kings at the height of their success in the early 2000s. He was a key player on the team that reached the Western Conference finals in 2002. He was named Sixth Man of the Year in 2003 after averaging a career-high 15.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.2 steals.
Jackson also played for the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Hornets and Houston Rockets during his 12-year career, but his best years were in Sacramento, where he remains a fan favorite.
Jackson later started his coaching career in Sacramento as an assistant on Paul Westphal’s staff from 2011-13. Jackson joined the Timberwolves as a player development coach in 2013 but returned to Sacramento in 2015.
Jackson spent three years as a college scout before becoming an assistant player development coach under former coach Dave Joerger in 2018. He was promoted to assistant coach/player development coach under Luke Walton in 2019.
In May 2021, the Kings named Jackson head coach of their G League team. Jackson led his team to a 25-7 record and the No. 1 seed this season before losing to Sioux Falls in the semifinals of the G League playoffs.
The Kings will now have to hire a new coach to replace Jackson in Stockton. Lindsey Harding, a player development coach in Sacramento, was a finalist for the position when Jackson got the job in 2021.
