Sacramento is reshaping the support structure around its roster for 2026-27, adding veteran coach Brendan Suhr to the bench, promoting DJ Ham, and installing Joe Ajike as head of player development in a broad set of coaching and basketball operations moves.
Kings set 2026-27 coaching and development staff
SEO Title: Sacramento Kings add Brendan Suhr, promote DJ Ham for 2026-27
SEO Description: The Kings announced coaching, player development, video and basketball operations additions ahead of the 2026-27 NBA season, led by Brendan Suhr, DJ Ham and Joe Ajike.
Suhr arrives with more than 40 years of experience across pro and college basketball. His NBA resume includes two championship seasons with Detroit’s 1989 and 1990 title teams, plus assistant-coaching stops with Atlanta, New Jersey, Toronto, Orlando and New York.
His college work has included Detroit Mercy, Fairfield, UCF, LSU and Stetson. Suhr also was on the staff for the gold medal-winning 1992 United States men’s Olympic team. Away from a team bench, he launched Coaching U in 2008 and has worked as a leadership consultant for the National Basketball Players Association for more than a decade.
Player development department gets new assignments
- Ham moves up to assistant coach after one season leading Sacramento’s player development work.
- Ajike joins the Kings as head of player development following the 2025-26 season in that role with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s G League affiliate.
- Jason Maxiell begins his first season as a Kings player development coach after spending 2025-26 as an assistant with the Stockton Kings.
Ham came to Sacramento after a 2024-25 stint as a video assistant and player development coach with Cleveland. His earlier Cavaliers organization work included serving as an assistant coach and director of player development for the Cleveland Charge. He previously coached at Northwood University, where he played his college ball, after a one-year professional stop in Germany and coaching experience at the high school and college levels.
Ajike brings recent experience from both the G League and Washington. He spent four seasons with the Wizards, first joining the club in a development and video position in 2021 before becoming player development manager from 2023 through 2025. Before entering the NBA, Ajike was a graduate assistant with Miami’s men’s program. He played at Rider University and graduated in 2018.
Maxiell’s move adds a former NBA frontcourt player to the development staff. Detroit selected him 26th overall in the 2005 draft, and he played more than 10 NBA seasons with the Pistons, Magic and Hornets. His Detroit teams reached three Eastern Conference Finals during the 2006-09 stretch.
Before turning pro, Maxiell played four seasons at Cincinnati from 2001-05. He earned second-team all-conference recognition from 2003-05, along with Conference USA All-Freshmen and Sixth Man of the Year honors in 2001-02.
Video room and operations staff additions
- Wyatt Lohaus joins as an assistant video coordinator.
- Drake LaMont also comes aboard as an assistant video coordinator.
- Kathy Evans is the new director of basketball data science.
- Imhotep “Tap” George joins as a coaching associate.
- Brandon Lewis is added as senior basketball software engineer.
Lohaus spent 2025-26 as a fellow with Mississippi State’s men’s staff after coaching at Iowa’s 212 Basketball Academy in 2024-25. He played two professional seasons overseas following his career at Northern Iowa, where he earned a degree in movement and exercise science.
LaMont enters his third NBA season after two years with Washington from 2023-25 as a coaching associate and assistant video coordinator. He also worked with Dallas as a player development intern in 2019-20. His college coaching background includes graduate assistant posts at Texas Tech in 2020-21 and Texas from 2021-23, following a playing career at Western Michigan from 2014-18.
Internal promotions
Sacramento also elevated Daniel Hixon to manager of scouting, Julius Lewis to assistant director of team security, and Nicolas Liagridonis to basketball data scientist and G League personnel coordinator.
