Minnesota native Dave Joerger has a new job in the NBA. Joerger, who was fired by the Memphis Grizzlies Saturday, wasn’t on the job market long. He was hired as the Sacramento Kings head coach Monday.
Sacramento vice president of basketball operations Vlade Divac said in a statement Monday that he’s excited to have Joerger join them.
“I am thrilled to welcome Dave to the Sacramento Kings. He is a strong and passionate leader with a proven track record of producing results. Dave shares our focus on creating a long-term culture of winning and I look forward to a bright future ahead for the Kings with his leadership on the court.”
In his three seasons as the Grizzlies’ head coach Joerger was 147-99. He led Memphis to a 42-40 record and the No. 7 seed in the NBA’s Western Conference playoffs, despite dealing with a boatload of injuries this season.
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According to ESPN, sources say the Kings became increasingly intrigued by the idea of hiring Joerger away from Memphis over the past week and sought permission to talk with him. The report says that’s one of the reasons the Grizzlies chose to cut ties with Joerger.
The Kings did not release details on the contract agreement with Joerger. ESPN’s Marc Stein reports the deal is in the neighborhood of 4-years, $16 million.
Joerger is a native of Staples, Minnesota. He played his college basketball at Concordia-Moorhead (1993-94) and at Minnesota State – Moorhead (1996-97).
As a coach he worked his way through the IBA and CBA, serving as the Sioux Falls Skyforce head coach from 2004-06. Joerger wound up as an assistant on the Grizzlies staff in 2007 and stayed in that role until taking over as the Memphis head coach in 2013.
Joerger interviewed with the Timberwolves in 2014, but chose to return to Memphis instead of becoming the Wolves head coach.
