Patrick Ewing will interview for the Sacramento Kings' head coaching vacancy.

Ewing is currently an assistant coach with the Charlotte Hornets.

Ewing has become a more serious candidate in recent seasons as he's taken on more responsibilities. Ewing has been an assistant coach with Steve Clifford, Stan Van Gundy and Jeff Van Gundy.

The Kings are intrigued by the possibility of having Ewing coach DeMarcus Cousins.

Sacramento VP of Basketball Operations Vlade Divac has expressed to people a desire to have three finalists to bring to ownership for a final round of interviews.

Spencer Hawes of the Charlotte Hornets had an MRI that revealed a sprained MCL in his right knee which will be re-evaluated in a week. 

Hawes played 15 minutes in Game 5, scoring six points and grabbing four rebounds.

Nicolas Batum told reporters at shootaround Wednesday morning that he "will likely play" in this evening's Game 5.

Batum has missed the last two games with a sprained left ankle.

After being upgraded to questionable on Sunday, Batum was unable to participate in the team's shootaround and will not play in Game Four.

He suffered a left ankle sprain against Boston on April 11th and then re-injured his foot late in Game Two against Miami.

"That's just NBA basketball," Clifford said. "I think our guys are good. We've had more than our share of injuries all year and they've had the right attitude. In this league, you get up in the morning, you say, 'Who's good to play today?' and you play the best you can with that team."

Charlotte will open Game Four with the same starting lineup as Game Three: Kemba Walker, Courtney Lee, Marvin Williams, Frank Kaminsky and Al Jefferson.

While Nicolas Batum missed Game 3 with a sprained left ankle, he could be coming back sooner than expected.

"Surprisingly much better than when it happened like three days ago," Batum said of his ankle. "I improved like a lot. The swelling is way down so I will just keep working on it with like four or five hours of treatment everyday until I get back as fast as possible on the court."

This improvement has quelled initial concerns that he would have to miss the entire remainder of the series.

Nicolas Batum is expected to miss the remainder of the Charlotte Hornets' first round series against the Miami Heat with a left ankle injury.

Batum underwent an X-ray on Thursday, which did not reveal a fracture.

Batum is unable to place weight on the foot.

The results of his MRI have yet to be released.

Nicolas Batum rolled his left ankle in the Charlotte Hornets' Game 2 loss to the Miami Heat.

Batum stepped on the left foot of Justise Winslow while trying to post him up near the three-point line.

Al Jefferson said that the injury looks bad enough that he doesn't expect him to return this series.

"It looked bad when it happened," Jefferson said. "Looking at his ankle now, it's pretty bad.

"That's part of the game. I feel like, me, personally, I don't think he will be able to come back."

Steve Clifford said he's "very" concerned about the severity of the injury.

"We won't know anything until tomorrow, but there was soreness, obviously," Clifford said. "And we'll just see."

Patrick Ewing would like to be considered for the New York Knicks' head coaching vacancy.

"You know, this is a great fit for me," Ewing said. "I have my number up there [in the Garden rafters]. I still live in the area. If I get an opportunity for an interview, I'd be happy."

Ewing is the lead assistant coach for the Hornets and has been an assistant for four teams over the past 13 seasons. 

"I've been doing this, what, 13 years now?" he said. "I see people who don't have the same amount on their résumé as I do and still have gotten opportunities. It is what it is. All I can do is continue to work, continue to get better at my craft, and hopefully one day somebody will give me an opportunity and I'll show that I'm ready."