Kings and Kaiser split
Publicity Agents reported the end of a 13-year partnership between the Sacramento Kings and Kaiser Permanente that had included sports-medicine facilities and community health programs. The announcement marks a change in a long-running team–health system collaboration. (x.com)
The Sacramento Kings and Kaiser Permanente have ended a partnership that began with the 2013-14 National Basketball Association season and grew into a fixture around Golden 1 Center. (nba.com) The Kings announced Kaiser Permanente as the team’s new medical provider on October 3, 2013, saying Kaiser physicians, orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists, nutritionists and fitness specialists would care for players during the season. The team also said Kaiser had already provided health care for Kings employees for 20 years before that expansion. (nba.com) That relationship moved beyond the training room. In 2023, the Kings and Kaiser Permanente were still running National Basketball Association FIT health events for Sacramento-area youth, including a neighborhood walk, a dance clinic and a teen yoga class at Golden 1 Center. (nba.com) The partnership also became part of the Kings’ long-term community portfolio. The Kings Foundation lists Kaiser Permanente Community Courts as one of its “Legacy Partnership Projects,” a category the team describes as strategic relationships lasting at least 10 years. (nba.com) Kaiser Permanente’s sports-medicine presence in downtown Sacramento also remained tied to the team’s orbit. Kaiser says its flagship sports medicine centers include Golden 1 Center, where “the same doctors who care for the Sacramento Kings” work with physical therapists and sports trainers. (mydoctor.kaiserpermanente.org) Kaiser separately says it now has a new Sports Medicine Center at Sacramento Downtown Commons, the district around the Kings’ arena, where an integrated team handles diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. That means the business partnership is ending even as Kaiser’s sports-medicine footprint in downtown Sacramento remains in place. (healthy.kaiserpermanente.org) As recently as April 10, 2026, the Kings were still publicly attaching Kaiser Permanente’s name to team programming, presenting rookie Nique Clifford with the 2026 Community Crossover Award. The split closes a partnership that had stayed visible almost to the end. (nba.com)
