Sports
Mike Brown is the latest coach to get bit by NBA’s Surprise Season Curse
Expectations are a dangerous thing.
Nobody knows that more than NBA coaches, and we had our latest example Friday when the Coach of the Year Curse came after Mike Brown. The Sacramento Kings deposed him as head coach on Friday, a little more than two years after taking over a 30-win team that had an NBA-record 16-season playoff drought and failing to lead them to a championship.
I kid … slightly. Arguably, there were reasons here, and the Kings front office knows more about what was happening behind the scenes than you or me. As near as anyone can tell, this was the front office’s call and not an impulsive Vivek Ranadivé Special, as our Sam Amick and Anthony Slater noted Saturday.
At a 10,000-foot level, there wasn’t a lot of difference between this year’s Kings and the Kings of the last two seasons. Sacramento had a positive scoring margin on the season (plus-1.2, not far off the plus-2.6 of 2022-23 or the plus-1.7 of 2023-24). If you strip out their bad fortune in late/close games (something that tends to be pretty random over larger samples), the Kings’ underlying data wasn’t that different from the 48- and 46-win seasons of the two preceding years.
Notably, they also were 16th in defense despite a seeming paucity of defensive talent on the roster, and they were 14th a year earlier despite similar shortcomings. If you’re going to blame the coach, you also have to explain how a team with Domantas Sabonis at center, no backup bigs of note and a 6-6 “power” forward managed to form a credible NBA defense. The game that got Brown fired was one he narrowly lost with Alex Len as his starting center.
On the other hand, the Kings had dropped to 13-18, including five straight home losses, after Thursday night’s collapse against Detroit. Brown’s postgame news conferences increasingly consisted of him imploring players to do the things they weren’t doing, and the underlying message to the attuned ear seemed to be that his message wasn’t traveling as well as it used to.
Thus, reasonable people can argue about whether Kangz gonna Kang, or if it’s more of a story about the team’s response to Brown’s message not resonating with key players the way he once did.
But as I alluded to, there’s a bigger story here, about the hidden danger of surprise seasons. If you’re wondering why the average job timespan of a Coach of the Year award winner is barely two years, look here, because we’re talking about two highly correlated groups — with the Coach of the Year often being the one whose team was the biggest surprise.
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Mike Brown’s final days with Kings: Disastrous play, tension with star and an awkward firing
Brown might have been a victim of his own success at some level, after the invigorating “Light The Beam” campaign in 2022-23 when the Kings unexpectedly won 48 games and grabbed the third seed in the West. It was a perfect storm of health, production, weakened opposition and vibes, and as such, it was always going to be difficult to repeat, much less exceed in future seasons. That became a bit more clear when a 44-win Golden State Warriors team beat them in seven games in the first round of the playoffs.
Unfortunately, the success likely shoved the Kings in a direction where the short term became too prioritized at the expense of bigger-picture roster building; they just weren’t talented enough to be thinking this way. I say “likely” since I don’t have the counterfactual of a 35-win Kings season in 2022-23, but the roster moves speak for themselves.
To review: Sacramento traded its 2023 first-rounder to generate enough cap room to do a renegotiate-and-extend deal for Sabonis rather than make a pick and use the space to add another player. The Sabonis deal still paid him richly in the out years (he makes $40.5 million this year), so it felt like a bit of a pyrrhic victory given his relatively limited flight risk. (Few contending teams have cap room, not everyone needs a center, Sabonis isn’t everybody’s cup of tea, etc.) The organizational “win” was locking in Sabonis, but that thought process made a lot more sense if it was a 60-win team in the first place.
Mike Brown had coached Domantas Sabonis in Sacramento since 2022. (John Jones / USA Today)
Similarly, the Kings extended Harrison Barnes rather than seek to get younger or use him in a sign-and-trade, traded two second-round picks for Chris Duarte and waived Neemias Queta to sign JaVale McGee. A critical scouting fail on Sasha Vezenkov also shot their midlevel exception into the sun.
A year later, after winning 46 games, they went a step further by trading Barnes, Duarte and draft capital for a 35-year-old DeMar DeRozan. A player known more for raising his team’s floor than its ceiling, DeRozan hasn’t totally fit in his 31 games, and his lack of size at the four is an obvious problem for a team that lacks length and athleticism up and down the roster.
Look, any of these decisions were at least quasi-defensible in a vacuum. In the aggregate, however, they paint a picture of a franchise getting a bit out over its skis. And now, that same organization likely feels the pressure of De’Aaron Fox looking at his future. That, and his potential free agency, as well as seeing a future cupboard in Sacramento that is slightly bare.
It’s a movie we’ve seen before. Success is a hell of a drug, but surprise success, in particular, can be real plot twist in the team-planning process.
Take Atlanta, for instance. The Hawks made the 2021 Eastern Conference finals and then spent two years mistakenly thinking they were on the cusp of contention. In reality, they were the apex of averageness, going 120-126 in the following three seasons and finishing ninth, eighth and 10th, respectively, with three playoff wins in those seasons. A reckless trade for Dejounte Murray and some rose-colored extensions painted them into a cap corner, one the Hawks only now are emerging from.
Examples from the wayback machine are abundant — 2013-14 Phoenix Suns, anyone? — but for more recent fare, consider a few examples: Would the Los Angeles Lakers have attacked their roster more proactively in the summer of 2023 if their 43-win team hadn’t made the Western Conference finals? Would the Portland Trail Blazers have thought more about breaking up the Damian Lillard–CJ McCollum backcourt if it weren’t for their own deep run in 2019? For that matter, will the Indiana Pacers end up regretting their own “lock it down” reaction to their Eastern Conference finals run in 2023, which yielded $350 million in contracts for Obi Toppin, Andrew Nembhard, Pascal Siakam and T.J. McConnell?
We can go on. The commonality for all of them (well, not Indiana … at least not yet) is that they never got any closer to their intended destination than they did in the surprise season and ended up churning through coaches and roster convulsions.
There is one other thread: Those teams couldn’t stick through whatever their plans were once things got hard. I think that’s because it was a revised, improvised plan to start, and that made it easier to shift to Plans B, C and X and start throwing things at the wall.
It takes a strong organization to survive that. The Miami Heat went through that in 2017 when they miraculously turned around an 11-30 start with a 30-11 second half and nearly made the playoffs. Miami’s offseason was loaded with bloated contracts for the role players who turned around their season, and the result was two years of mediocrity and a slog of digging their way out. Finally, the Heat landed Jimmy Butler, drafted Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, found Duncan Robinson under a rock and pushed to the 2020 finals.
And in those two intervening disappointing seasons, with a combined record of 83-81, the thing they didn’t do was change coaches.
“What they did there is really hard to do,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said when I asked for his thoughts on Sacramento and Brown before Saturday’s Miami-Atlanta game. “If you’ve been losing for 15, 20 years since Rick Adelman was there, and to change the culture and make the playoffs — you stick with it. Some of our best moments have been when we lost or struggled with things and you all get in a room, and the organization basically says, ‘Figure it the F out; there are no changes.’
“This league is hard. You have to go through adversity together as an entire organization if you’re going to break through and get to the other side. But yeah, that sucks.”
The next question for the Kings — whether it’s Doug Christie or somebody else on the sideline — is whether they can course-correct effectively. The good news is that the basic ingredients of a half-decent, West Play-In Tournament-level team are there right now. The bad news is that the current group has a near-zero chance of being anything more than that.
With that last sentence, at least, hopefully we’ve reset the expectations to something more appropriate.
(Top photo: Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)
Sports
Ex-NFL reporter Dianna Russini interaction with police officer to dodge traffic ticket comes to light
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Police bodycam footage appeared to refute a claim made by former NFL reporter Dianna Russini earlier this year about what she did to get out of a traffic ticket.
Russini, whose relationship with New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel led to her resigning from her role with The Athletic in April, said on the “Stugotz and Company” show back in February that she FaceTimed the NFL coach, though she didn’t drop the name, of the officer’s favorite team after being pulled over for being on her phone.
It was a story that came up again during the New York Times’ deep dive into the Russini-Vrabel controversy, and now police bodycam footage has confirmed that wasn’t the case. However, she did name-drop a coach.
ESPN reporter Dianna Russini looks on during the NFL game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Sept. 16, 2018. (Mark Alberti/Icon Sportswire)
The footage went just over seven minutes long, as Russini was stopped in Ridgewood, New Jersey, for using her phone while driving. Not only did a FaceTime never happen, but no call at all occurred during the exchange between Russini and the officer.
What did occur, though, was Russini showing the officer texts she had been having with Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, and she showed the officer her phone with the texts on it.
DIANNA RUSSINI PULLED PATHETIC MOVE WITH AN OFFICER TO GET OUT OF A TICKET, AND IT SHOULD HAVE THE NFL NERVOUS
“I’m an NFL reporter, and I just broke that Seam McDermott got fired from the Bills,” Russini told the officer almost immediately, understanding why she was being pulled over. “I was gonna pull over because I have to make calls. I know you don’t care, but I’m just letting you know my reason why. It was a work thing and it was an emergency for what I do.”
McDermott was fired the morning of Jan. 19, which was the date shown on the bodycam footage, after the Bills’ AFC Divisional Round loss to the Denver Broncos.
The officer replied that Russini had been on her phone “for a while” before pulling her over, though he did acknowledge she had a job to do.
Russini continued, telling the officer that former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll “wants the job” with the Bills. He was connected to the team given his history with Buffalo prior to joining the Giants, but they hired in-house with Joe Brady being promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach. Daboll ended up joining Robert Saleh’s staff as offensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans.
Dianna Russini, left, and Mike Vrabel, right, are shown in a split composite image featuring Russini with an ESPN microphone and Vrabel on the Titans sideline wearing a headset. (Imagn Images)
Russini, then, asked if the officer was a Giants or Jets fan given the New Jersey ties. When he responded by saying he was a Vikings fan, it prompted Russini to seemingly show texts with O’Connell. The conversation, which included Russini saying the Vikings’ quarterback “sucks” and “KOC’s awesome” ultimately led to the officer letting her off with a warning.
“I’m gonna cut you a break on the cellphone,” the officer was heard saying. “I understand your job requires you to be on the phone a lot. Just try to wait until you get home, OK?”
PATRIOTS SAY THEY ‘FULLY SUPPORT’ MIKE VRABEL AMID LATEST IN CONTROVERSY INVOLVING DIANNA RUSSINI
The Center Square first reported Russini’s interaction with the officer.
Fox News Digital reached out to Russini and the Vikings for comment.
Ridgewood Police Chief Forest Lyons issued a statement on the matter.
“On January 19, 2026, at 9:40 a.m., a Ridgewood police officer conducted a motor vehicle stop on Godwin Avenue involving Ms. Dianna Russini for the use of a handheld cell phone while driving,” the statement read. “After following department protocol during the stop, and reviewing Ms. Russini’s driving history, the officer exercised his professional discretion and issued a verbal warning to Ms. Russini.
Dianna Russini attends the 2026 Fanatics Super Bowl Party at Pier 48 in San Francisco, California, on Feb. 7, 2026. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)
“The use of officer discretion in determining whether to issue a warning or a citation is consistent with Ridgewood Police Department policy and longstanding practice. Police officers are encouraged to use their judgment and, when appropriate, provide motorists with warnings as part of the Department’s commitment to fair, impartial and community-oriented policing.”
Russini resigned from her post at The Athletic amid mounting criticism over her relationship with Vrabel after photographs of them hugging and holding hands at a private resort in Sedona, Arizona, went viral. After initially trying to downplay it, saying “reporters interact with sources away from stadiums and other venues,” Russini ultimately released her resignation.
After the original photos, others dating back to 2020 showed Vrabel and Russini kissing at a bar in New York City. The pictures exclusively obtained by the New York Post were taken in the early hours of March 11, 2020.
“They were kissing, and they were all over each other,” an eyewitness told the outlet. “He had a ring on.”
Dianna Russini appears on the red carpet prior to the NFL Honors awards presentation at YouTube Theater in Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 10, 2022. (Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports)
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While Russini resigned, Vrabel was back with the Patriots after a counseling visit, which fell on Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Vrabel said he had difficult conversations with his family, while also speaking with his players about the situation. The Patriots said before the draft they “fully support” Vrabel, allowing him to seek the counseling he desired despite four rounds of the draft still remaining.
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Group play is over and it’s knockout time at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The round of 32 is in progress, with several teams already moving on the round of 16, including tournament co-hosts Canada and Mexico. The U.S. will be looking to do the same when it faces Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday.
Here’s everything you need to know about World Cup knockout stage matches being played Wednesday, Thursday and Friday across the U.S., Mexico and Canada (all times Pacific).
Wednesday’s round of 32 matches
England vs. DR Congo
England’s Jude Bellingham celebrates with teammates after scoring against Panama on June 27.
(Steve Luciano / Associated Press)
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Time: 9 a.m.
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: England was unbeaten in group play, but it looked sluggish, failing to score in a goalless draw with Ghana then needing two second-half scores to beat Panama. Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have combined for five of England’s six goals while Jordan Pickford hasn’t given up a goal since the opening half of the first game. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, playing in the World Cup for the first time since 1974, made it out of the group stage for the first time ever by beating Uzbekistan with three second-half goals.
Belgium vs. Senegal
Belgium’s Leandro Trossard celebrates after scoring against New Zealand on June 26.
(Abbie Parr / Ap Photo/abbie Parr)
Where: Lumen Field, Seattle
Time: 1 p.m.
TV: FS1, Telemundo
The buzz: Unbeaten Belgium didn’t score a goal of its own until routing New Zealand 5-1 in its group-play finale. That allowed it to finish atop of its group and advance to the knockout stages, something it failed to do four years ago. Senegal started with consecutive losses, but routed Iraq 5-0, giving it the best goal differential of all third-place teams and allowing it to advance.
U.S. vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina
U.S. forward Christian Pulisic shoots during a loss to Turkey at the World Cup on June 25.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Where: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, Calif.
Time: 5 p.m.
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: The U.S. won its group, winning twice in the first round for the first time since 1930. But it has won just once beyond the group stage in its history and hasn’t beaten a European team in 12 tries dating to November 2022. Bosnia-Herzegovina beat Qatar in its group-stage finale to advance to the knockout rounds for the first time. Ermin Mahmic has two of the team’s five goals.
Thursday’s round of 32 matches
Spain vs. Austria
Austria’s Marko Arnautovic celebrates after a goal against Algeria on June 27 at the World Cup.
(Reed Hoffmann / Associated Press)
Where: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood
Time: Noon
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: Spain did not allow a goal in the group stage with keeper Unai Simón making just four saves in the three shutouts. But No. 3 Spain has struggled offensively; leave out its 4-0 rout of Saudi Arabia and it scored just once. Austria needed a goal deep in stoppage time to draw Algeria and finish second in its group, advancing to the second round for the first time since 1982. Marko Arnautovic has two of the team’s six goals.
Portugal vs. Croatia
Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo attempts an overhead kick against Colombia at the World Cup on June 27.
(Robert Cianflone / Getty Images)
Where: BMO Field, Toronto
Time: 4 p.m.
TV: FS1, Telemundo
The buzz: Call this the Geritol Cup. Unbeaten Portugal finished second in its group with Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, becoming the second-oldest male to score in a World Cup and the only man to score in six consecutive tournaments while Croatia saw Luka Modric become the oldest player in history to record a World Cup assist. Croatia has reached the semifinals of the last two tournaments, but its golden generation is aging. Portugal, a quarterfinalist in 2022, is hoping to give Ronaldo the one title he’s missing.
Switzerland vs. Algeria
Switzerland’s Johan Manzambi heads the ball against Canada at the World Cup on June 24.
(Abbie Parr / Associated Press)
Where: BC Place, Vancouver
Time: 8 p.m.
TV: FS1, Telemundo
The buzz: Unbeaten Switzerland held off Canada in its last game to win its group for the first time since 2006. The Swiss have not won a knockout-round game since 1954. Midfielder Johan Manzambi, the team’s youngest player at 20, has three of Switzerland’s seven goals. Algeria drew Austria in its group-play final to advance as a third-place team. Riyad Mahrez, 35, had a brace in that game and leads Algeria with two goals.
Friday’s round of 32 matches
Australia vs. Egypt
Egypt’s Mohamed Salah celebrates after scoring against New Zealand at the World Cup on June 21.
(Alex Grimm / Getty Images)
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Time: 11 a.m.
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: Australia finished second to the U.S. in its group but stumbled into the round of 32, going 195 minutes without a goal. It’s the first time since 1974 Australia has gone scoreless in consecutive World Cup games. The Socceroos are playing in the knockout stage for the third time in 20 years but have yet to win an elimination game. Unbeaten Egypt also finished second in its group, on a goal-differential tiebreaker. Its five goals have come from five different players. The Pharaohs, Africa’s oldest national team, will be playing in the second round of the World Cup for the first time.
Argentina vs. Cape Verde
Argentina’s Lionel Messi, left, and Jordan’s Noussair Mazraoui battle for the ball at the World Cup on June 27.
(Tony Gutierrez / Associated Press)
Where: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Fla.
Time: 3 p.m.
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: The last World Cup loss for Argentina came in its 2022 opener, making its nine-game unbeaten run the longest under one coach since 1986, the year it won its second championship. Speaking of streaks, when Lionel Messi came off the bench to score in the group finale, it gave him goals in a record seven consecutive World Cup games. He is tied with France’s Kylian Mbappé in the Golden Boot race, having scored six of Argentina’s eight goals. Unbeaten Cape Verde is playing in the World Cup for the first time, advancing to the knockout stages behind three straight draws, two of them clean sheets by Vozinha, the team’s 40-year-old keeper. It is the first debutant to go unbeaten in the group stage since Senegal in 2002. The smallest country ever to advance out of World Cup group play, Cape Verde had just seven shots on target in the group stage, according to FIFA.
Colombia vs. Ghana
Colombia’s Gustavo Puerta reacts during a match against Portugal at the World Cup on June 27.
(Rebecca Blackwell / Associated Press)
Where: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
Time: 6:30 p.m.
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: Unbeaten Colombia won its group but scored just once in its final two games. It’s 59 shots are tied for third in the tournament but just four of those found the back of the net. Goalkeeper Camilo Vargas, on the other hand, has been called on to make just five saves. Ghana is back in the knockout stages for the first time since 2010, advancing as a third-place team.
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Winning two knockout stage games? That means you’re really in the running to win the World Cup.
Let’s check out the updated odds for which countries will make it to the quarterfinals at FanDuel Sportsbook as of July 1.
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.
To Reach Quarterfinals
France: -1250 (bet $10 to win $10.80 total)
Argentina: -425 (bet $10 to win $12.35 total)
Morocco: -260 (bet $10 to win $13.85 total)
Brazil: -240 (bet $10 to win $14.17 total)
England: -175 (bet $10 to win $15.71 total)
Spain: -140 (bet $10 to win $17.14 total)
Colombia: -105 (bet $10 to win $19.52 total)
USA: +105 (bet $10 to win $20.50 total)
Mexico: +140 (bet $10 to win $24 total)
Norway: +160 (bet $10 to win $26 total)
Portugal: +175 (bet $10 to win $27.50 total)
Canada: +180 (bet $10 to win $28 total)
Belgium: +185 (bet $10 to win $28.50 total)
Switzerland: +195 (bet $10 to win $29.50 total)
Senegal: +370 (bet $10 to win $47 total)
Algeria: +550 (bet $10 to win $65 total)
Egypt: +650 (bet $10 to win $75 total)
Ghana: +750 (bet $10 to win $85 total)
The USA is currently one of the favorites to reach the World Cup quarterfinals (Getty Images).
Here’s what to know about this oddsboard.
Recent History: The quarterfinals are kinda a given for France, at least in recent years. The French have made it to at least the quarterfinals in five of the last seven World Cups, and they have made the final in four of the last seven years, winning the tournament twice. Les Bleus are now heavy favorites at -1250 to beat Paraguay and get back to the quarterfinals.
The Host Nations: Before this summer, Canada had never won a World Cup match in two tournament appearances. But that has all changed. Canada is through to the Round of 16 after beating South Africa in the Round of 32. As for Mexico, it has recorded four straight scoreless wins to start the tournament for the first time in its nation’s history. El Tri will look to get back to the quarterfinals for the first time in 40 years after dominating Ecuador in the Round of 32. After its win over Ecuador, Mexico jumped from +290 to +140 to make the quarters. The U.S. looks to replicate the other two host nations’ knockout stage performances against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday.
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