(Reuters) – Sacramento Kings assistant general manager Peja Stojakovic has stepped down from his role, the NBA franchise said on Saturday, a day after Vlade Divac resigned as general manager following their failure to reach the 2019-20 season’s playoffs.
Stojakovic, who held the job for the past two seasons, played for the Kings from 1998–2006, guiding them to the Western Conference Finals in 2002.
“We are deeply appreciative to Peja for his contributions and commitment to the Kings and to the city of Sacramento both as a legend and as an executive,” said Kings owner and chairman Vivek Ranadive.
“Peja is a pillar of the community and he will always remain a part of our Kings family.”
A three-time All Star, Stojakovic had stints with the Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Hornets and Toronto Raptors before joining the Dallas Mavericks and winning an NBA Championship in 2011.
He retired in 2011 and has held various front office executive roles for the Kings since 2015.
“It has been a great joy and honor to work in the Kings front office,” said Stojakovic. “I want to thank the organization and especially the incredible fans around the world for the support over the years.”
The Kings, who finished with a 31-41 regular season record, on Friday named Joe Dumars, the club’s executive vice-president of basketball operations and a former double NBA champion with the Detroit Pistons, as interim GM.
(Reporting by Arvind Sriram in Bengaluru; editing by Richard Pullin)
