3 weeks ago
- Cavaliers
- Published: May. 08, 2026, 6:00 a.m.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Mike Brown.
While watching nan Knicks successful nan playoffs, I’d spot Mike Brown coaching New York and think, “If nan Cavs negociate to get by Detroit, they astir apt will play Mike Brown and nan Knicks.”
If that so happens, it will beryllium nan 2nd information successful a statement wherever nan Cavs will look a erstwhile Cleveland coach. They are dealing pinch J.B. Bickerstaff successful this round.
Mike Brown coached nan Cavs from 2005-10 … nan first time.
Brown coached nan Cavs again for nan 2013-14 season.
He besides had stops pinch nan Lakers (one season, positive fgive games) and Sacramento (2 ½ seasons) earlier landing pinch nan Knicks.
Mike Brown’s coaching record: 507-333.
He took nan Cavs to nan 2007 NBA Finals, led by LeBron James. He was fired successful nan summertime of 2010. The Cavs had back-to-back winning seasons (66-16 and 61-21), but could not get backmost to The Finals.
Mike Brown, nan subsister
In nan summertime of 2010, James was a free agent. The Cavs thought a caller coach mightiness person James to stay. They hired Byron Scott.
It didn’t matter. They could person hired Hall of Famers Red Auerbach, Phil Jackson aliases Dr. James Naismith (who invented basketball), James was gone. The woody was group pinch Dwyane Wade recruiting Chris Bosh and James to subordinate him to create a ace squad successful Miami.
Not judge nan coach mattered to James successful position of his determination to travel home. After all, he agreed to play for nan Cavs pinch David Blatt arsenic nan coach, an import from Maccabi Tel Aviv and nan EuroLeague.
Brown bounced from nan Cavs to nan Lakers and past backmost to nan Cavs for 1 play (33-49 successful 2013-14). The Cavs fired him because they were chasing James (a free supplier again) and thought Brown mightiness beryllium a deterrent to nan Kid From Akron making a return to Northeast Ohio.
Brown’s adjacent extremity was Sacramento, wherever he took nan Kings to nan playoffs for nan first clip successful 16 years. He had a 107-88 grounds pinch nan Kings and was fired aft a 13-18 commencement successful 2024-25.
Along nan way, he besides served arsenic a apical adjunct to Golden State caput coach Steve Kerr.
Mike Brown ... New York, New York
The Knicks fired seasoned coach Tom Thibodeau past summer. He took New York to nan Eastern Conference Finals for nan first clip successful 25 years.
No matter, immoderate players complained Thibodeau was excessively reliable connected them and played them excessively galore minutes.
Like galore coaches successful each sports – including Brown – Thibodeau suffered from what I telephone “The Curse of Pretty Good.” He took complete a losing team, turned them into a victor … but didn’t triumph capable successful nan playoffs.
The aforesaid was existent of Bickerstaff. He was fired successful nan summertime of 2024 aft nan Cavs mislaid to Boston successful nan 2nd round. Pretty good, but not bully enough.
Thibodeau had a 51-31 grounds successful 2024-25 and mislaid to Indiana successful six games.
Brown was hired to do 1 point – scope nan NBA Finals. He had a 53-29 regularisation play record, not that it matters overmuch successful this situation.
In January, Knicks Owner James Dolan told this to WFAN’s Craig Carton:
“We want to get to nan Finals, and we should triumph nan Finals. This is sports and thing tin happen. But getting to nan Finals, we perfectly sewage to do it.”
The Knicks lead Philadelphia 2-0 successful nan best-of-7 2nd information of nan playoffs.
Are nan Knicks a title caliber team? In nan wide-open Eastern Conference, who knows?
“People person talked astir a mandate,” Brown told nan New York media Tuesday. “I’m coaching to win. It doesn’t matter what others say. I’m disappointed if we’re not successful nan Finals and person a chance to triumph it.”
Brown reportedly was not New York’s first prime for nan job. The Knicks reached retired to Dallas coach Jason Kidd, but were turned down. Brown wisely doesn’t attraction astir that.
Brown has had 9 winning seasons successful his 11 years arsenic a caput coach. He’s been to nan playoffs 8 times, nan Finals erstwhile (2007 pinch nan Cavs).
“The opportunity for this occupation came open,” he said. “I was intrigued by nan players. I was intrigued by being successful New York, calling Madison Square Garden my location court.”
Well, nan occupation is his and now is his existent test.
I'm grateful to my readers who person publication maine for decades. I'm nan writer of much than 30 books, a victor of nan National Headliner Award arsenic nan nation's champion sports columnist successful 2020 and champion sports writer in...
