Do New York Knicks Already Have a Head Coaching Problem?
After falling to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, the New York Knicks parted ways with head coach Tom Thibodeau. In his place, the franchise hired veteran Mike Brown to lead the squad to the NBA Finals with aspirations for its first title since 1973.
The controversial decision has already left a perplexing impression ahead of the Knicks' season opener on Wednesday, with All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns expressing confusion about his role under Brown: "Honestly, I don't know—but we're figuring it out."
It's not a great sign. What the Knicks do on the court over the next 82 games and into the playoffs will answer whether Brown was the right choice over Thibodeau.
Still, there's reason for concern as Brown's coaching stints tend to start hot only to flame out quickly.
Could this one burn out ahead of schedule?
History of Losing the Locker Room
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Brown's longest stretch with one team (five seasons) was with the Cleveland Cavaliers, peaking in an NBA Finals appearance with LeBron James in 2007. He hasn't lasted three years in any of his subsequent jobs.
He lost Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in his second year, installing the Princeton Offense for a winless preseason and 1-4 start in 2012-13. The players were perplexed, confused, and mystified; Brown was let go after five games (soon after the Bryant "death stare").
His 33-win season back in Cleveland suggested he'd had his last chance, but a long run on Steve Kerr's bench as a Golden State Warriors assistant helped rebuild his credibility.
The Sacramento Kings, who hadn't made the postseason for generations (2006), got a reinvented Brown. No longer all about defense, he got their high-powered offense to the postseason, where they fell in seven games to the Warriors.
However, history then repeated. The Kings started 13-18; the locker room fell apart, and Doug Christie replaced Brown, despite what was accomplished a year prior.
Enter the Knicks…
What Brown Brings to the Table
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To be clear, Brown has stuck around this long for good reason. He's well-liked as a genuine, kind person. Not many coaches have an NBA Finals appearance on their resume.
The 55-year-old knows hoops, transitioning from an old-school defense-first coach to leading the Kings to an offensive powerhouse (in year one, not so much in the second season).
The Knicks should be well-prepared this season, once the players adapt to his system. Historically, Brown's teams have been solid in their first year. No one will claim he isn't doing the work or doesn't know how to teach the game.
Why Towns' Words May Be a Bad Omen
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One of the criticisms of Thibodeau was that he was too stubborn. True or false, he had the support of his players.
Brown is similarly stubborn, especially in-game. He's similarly a "go-down-with-the-game-plan" coach. If given enough talent, he will devise a strategy that works—until it doesn't.
That formula has led to tremendous regular seasons but to unfulfilled potential in the playoffs (outside of that early LeBron James run with the Cavaliers). Perhaps a postseason hangover regularly sours his second year with a team. Brown loses something that next year, perhaps his players' trust, as he overcorrects strategically after what went wrong in the postseason.
That Towns hasn't lost a sense of his role but never found it to begin with is a bad omen for Brown and the Knicks.
The NBA is a star-led league, and the Knicks head coach needs to get Jalen Brunson and Towns on his page to survive in New York.
Towns and his teammates may have a natural resistance to change, given Thibodeau took the team to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Brown may have some of the same blind spots to playoff adjustments as Thibodeau, but this is his best chance to get back to the NBA Finals since Cleveland. Injuries to Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics) and Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers) have weakened the East.
The Knicks should be one of the last teams standing, but only if Brown reaches his star players.
Given the high expectations and Towns' apparent confusion before the opener (and not in Year 2, accompanied by a death stare), the situation in New York is one to watch very closely this season.
Email Eric Pincus at eric.pincus@gmail.com and follow him on X @EricPincus and Bluesky.
