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Sacramento, Calif. • Utah Jazz assistant coach Sidney Lowe pleaded guilty Wednesday in North Carolina to charges that he failed to file state income tax returns while a head coach at North Carolina State University.
Lowe, flew to California and re-joined the Jazz around half-time of Wednesday night's game against the Kings, had a 45-day jail sentence suspended and was placed on probation for 36 months, according to a release from the North Carolina Department of Revenue.
The 53-year-old Lowe was also ordered to perform 100 hours of community service and to pay more than $79,200 in restitution and a fine of $2,000.
Attorney Lee Turner, told The Associated Press that Lowe "has been very embarrassed by this from the beginning," attributing the failure to file to his client being inattentive to detail.
"I assure you this is something that is never going to happen again," Turner said.
According to the Department of Revenue, Lowe did not file state tax returns for 2009, 2010 or 2011, his last three years as the university's head basketball coach, even after being contacted by officials.
He earned more than $950,000 as the coach at North Carolina State, a radio talk show host and from Adidas endorsements in both 2009 and 2010, a revenue department investigation found. He made in excess of $659,000 from those sources in 2011 in addition to his salary from the Jazz.
Coach Tyrone Corbin and the Jazz declined to comment on the case, calling it a "personal matter." When asked if he thought the case would impact Lowe's job, Corbin said, "Not at all."
Sticking around
The banner outside Sleep Train Arena says "1985-Forever."
After years of speculation about the Kings leaving town, the team's new ownership, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and the City Council have the team on track for a new downtown arena that will keep the Kings in the city.
"I think it's a win for Sacramento. I think it's a win for the NBA," said Corbin, who played for the Kings in 1995-96 and then again in 1999-2000. "I understand how important it is for any city to have an NBA franchise. Every time since I've been in the league, playing here, coming here, even when when they weren't having their best years, the fans always came to support the team. … It's good to see them keep a team here."
Jimmer's time
The Kings revamped their lineup last week, acquiring Rudy Gay in a seven-player deal with Toronto. One of the beneficiaries of the deal could be Sacramento guard Jimmer Fredette.
The former BYU star hasn't been able to earn regular minutes in the team's rotation, but with the departure of point guard Greivis Vasquez, Fredette could be in line for more time as the back up point guard.
"We'll give Jimmer first craft at it and see how he plays," Kings coach Mike Malone said.
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