Kings fire head coach Westphal

By Paul Levine Jan 5, 2012, 21:18 GMT

Los Angeles - Paul Westphal was Thursday fired as head coach of the Sacramento Kings and was being replaced by assistant Keith Smart.

'I want to thank Paul for all of his effort on behalf of the Kings,' the president of basketball operations, Geoff Petrie, said in a statement on the team's website.

'Unfortunately, the overall performance level of the team has not approached what we felt was reasonable to expect. I wish him the best in his future endeavors.'

In two-plus seasons, Westphal guided the Kings to a woeful 51-120 record, including a Western Conference-worst 2-5 mark to start this lockout-shortened campaign.

Westphal thanked the owners for giving him a shot to turn around the fortunes of the bottom-feeding Kings' franchise, but couldn't deliver.

'I would like to thank the Maloof family for the incredible opportunity they gave me to participate in the attempt to bring the Sacramento Kings back to prominence,' Westphal said. 'While the job is far from finished, I am proud of the strides we were able to make.

'Nothing comes easy in the NBA, and I know they will not rest in their efforts to rebuild this team.'

Smart, former head coach of the Golden State Warriors, will be at the helm for the Kings in Thursday's home contest against the Milwaukee Bucks.