Sacramento State head coach Mike Bibby took the podium on Tuesday to discuss his first collegiate coaching position.
The former Sacramento King was announced as the program’s 17th head coach on Monday, March 24.
“I’m glad to get my start back here,” Bibby said. “I started coaching when my son was nine years old and I never thought that it would come this far.”
Bibby said he plans to instill a winning culture in what has been a directionless program over the past few seasons.
“People might look at me crazy, but I want to change that this year,” Bibby said. “That’s just the way I’ve always been. I want to win.”
After making his debut for the Sacramento Kings 24 years ago, Bibby has officially assumed his position as the head coach of Sacramento State men’s basketball.
The former Kings star expressed gratitude for the city where he spent half of his NBA career and the role it played in his career and the lives of his children.
“Sacramento’s like a second home to me,” Bibby said. “I’ve lived here, played half of my career here and my kids grew up here.”
Bibby said he intends to use his 14 years of NBA experience to help the program reach a level where they can compete in the Big Sky Conference after two straight seasons of finishing dead last.
Bibby’s hiring comes off the heels of a 7-25 2024-25 season led by interim head coach Michael Czepil, who had been in an associate coaching role next to former head coach David Patrick since 2022.
Sacramento State President Luke Wood welcomed the program’s new head coach with open arms and presented the hire as a defining moment in school history.
“Mike Bibby is a name that resonates with every level of basketball,” Wood said. “He brings with him a championship mindset, an elite understanding of the game and a deep commitment to develop young men on and off the court.”
Sac State Athletic Director Mark Orr said he and Bibby have discussed a potential alliance for the past three years; what was once a dream has finally come to fruition.
“In 2022, when we hired David Patrick, Mike had reached out to me and said he may have some interest in coaching,” Orr said. “The timing wasn’t quite right. I wasn’t sure how badly Mike Bibby really wanted to be here.”
Sac State men’s basketball has finally found stability in what has the potential to be a winning era in Sac State basketball.
Bibby, whose name has already been etched into Sacramento lore, said he welcomes the opportunity to put Sac State basketball on the map.
“I was very emotional when I got the job,” Bibby said. “I had the best years of my career in Sacramento. I want to make the community and the city happy again and give them what they’ve always wanted, which is winning basketball.”
