Mike Brown Has Plans for Knicks Star Duo

The New York Knicks long' arduous path to finding their next head coach finally came to a close on Wednesday, when they announced that they'd settled on Mike Brown as their new top man.

The veteran coach was leading the Sacramento Kings up until a few months ago, when he was fired amidst the team's slide to open the 2024-25 regular season. He was experienced and well-connected enough to land an interview alongside some other free agent candidates in June, eventually reaching the next round of the hiring process in getting to sit down with Knicks brass a second time.

That update was just reported on Tuesday, and Brown receiving the offer to fill in for the fired Tom Thibodeau not long after.

BREAKING: The New York Knicks are expected to land on two-time NBA Coach of the Year Mike Brown as the franchise's next head coach, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/LOXb74LFe4
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 2, 2025

According to Clutch Points' Kris Pursiainen, New York's top decision-makers reportedly took note of Brown's excitement to work with the current Knicks core, notably the Jalen Brunson-Karl-Anthony Towns tandem that's been questioned since the team met their demise in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Have also heard the extent to which Mike Brown was ‘bought in’ on Brunson and Towns as a duo was notable to the Knicks throughout the interview process.

Doesn’t mean the Knicks are married to the pairing, things change fast, but making the most of what you have maybe a factor. https://t.co/hi3OFFRUxn
— Kris Pursiainen (@krispursiainen) July 2, 2025

They're not the most gifted defensive combination, with both clutch time hero Brunson and the perimeter-dwelling big man in Towns each facing their own struggles against the Finals-bound Indiana Pacers, but Brown has been known for elevating talented rosters into cream-of-the-crop scoring units.

He experienced his most noteworthy success as a head coach with the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers in the mid-late 2000s, and resurfaced once again in the 2020s to captain the long-rudderless Kings back into contention with their league-leading offense. He also studied as an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs and Golden State Warriors in between stops, giving him a good feel of how to handle stars and make pieces work together.

As Pursiainen pointed out, though, things can change fast. It was just a little over two years ago when Brown was lauded as a Coach of the Year-winning locker room leader in helping a historic franchise finally taste the playoffs after a long drought.

The Knicks aren't done retooling in free agency, but their early moves to add Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele to the talented starting lineup indicates that Brown will have plenty to play with in attempting to build on Thibodeau's success.

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