SACRAMENTO – New season, new philosophy.

This year at Media Day on Monday, the Kings' lettering was large and clear on coach Mike Brown's jersey.

“Climb together.”

A metaphor inspired by the real life of Ed Viesturs. Brown invited Viesturs and his mountaineering team to come to Sacramento and talk to the boys about their work. What was intended as encouraging words to get a group of athletes excited before the start of a new season ended up being much more.

Their touching stories provided a refreshing and unique perspective on each Kings player and staff member.

“My boys hear my voice a lot. So I try not to tell them too much in the summer,” Brown said Monday. “So Wes Wilcox, our assistant GM, had suggested that I bring in a guest speaker to address the team.

“And so I started thinking about it, and I don't know, one day I suddenly realized that it had something to do with mountaineering. I started doing some research and there are a lot of similarities or parallels between a Mountaineers team and an NBA team.”

The greatest thing is misfortune.

The group has climbed some of the most challenging mountains, such as Mount Everest and Annapurna. But for those brave enough to face Annapurna, the risk is costly. For every three people who climb the mountain, one dies.

While adversity doesn't necessarily mean death for the Kings, it does show the importance of teamwork – especially when the going gets tough.

“Hearing some of the things they’re doing in terms of preparation, travel and all that, it just impressed me,” Brown said. “You need teammates who are willing to make sacrifices and are loyal to your group. You need teammates who are extremely focused on the day-to-day process, because if you start thinking about reaching the top, you will be distracted by something that is in front of you, which of course will lead to tragedy.

“And so paying attention to the process, the daily process, the daily details, making sacrifices and being a loyal teammate and accepting your role, all of that is extremely important in a mountaineering team or an expedition group. And at the end of the day, of course, reaching the top is like a championship, and you won't always reach the top. And just because you didn't reach the summit doesn't mean it's a failure. You have to get back on your horse and try again and again.”

The Kings certainly didn't reach their peak last season – not even close.

The Kings enjoyed the highlights of a storybook 2022-23 season in which they broke a 17-year playoff drought, but were unable to build on their success last season as the West got tougher.

With six-time NBA All-Star DeMar DeRozan at their side, now joining forces with De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, the Kings are happy with their talent level but know it takes more than one man to make a difference make.

“Another parallel is that not the entire team will reach the summit,” Brown said. “Only one or two guys will do it and that again corresponds to the fact that I've been to six finals and played in four championships. At the end of the day you see Steph (Curry) receiving an MVP trophy. Tim (Duncan) receives an MVP trophy. You see (Kevin Durant), whoever it is, and they get a lot of credit for the Finals MVP trophy, but it was the entire team that played its role to get us there.

“It was fantastic to have (Viesturs) come in and tell his story. It was great. So our thing here is climbing together. The higher you go from your summer work through the preseason, regular season and playoffs, the harder the battle becomes. And you have to be passionate about what you do or what lies ahead. And if so, it will get you through the dog days, because there will be some dog days. That’s why our theme this year is “Climbing Together.”

While the comparison between basketball and mountaineering may seem extreme, the contrast between the two was also important to Brown.

When these climbers faced life and death thousands upon thousands of feet above the ground, they had no other choice. Brown wants his boys to deal with adversity as best as possible, but hopes they can still find a way to have fun playing the game they love.

“If we encounter any adversity again in our lives, we can go home to see our wives, children and loved ones,” Brown said. “But for them, especially climbing Annapurna, it could be death. This is real adversity.

“When we encountered adversity this year. I will remind our boys: Annapurna, Annapurna, we are not in Annapurna. We are not climbing Annapurna. Let’s enjoy what we do and figure it out.”

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