Knicks Axe Thibodeau’s Nephew as Mike Brown Brings His Crew

After letting go of Tom Thibodeau, the New York Knicks have also relieved his nephew following the NBA Summer League.

Nick Thibodeau, hired last year as assistant video coordinator, was part of his uncle’s coaching staff, who are not returning next season, Hoopshype’s Michael Scotto reports.

Scotto identified former assistant coaches Othella Harrington, Daniel Brad and Dice Yoshimoto as part of the cut following Tom Thibodeau’s dismissal. Longtime Thibodeau assistant Andy Greer will also not return, according to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy.

Mike Brown Adds 2 of His Former Kings Staff

New Knicks head coach Mike Brown will add two of his former assistants from the Sacramento Kings, namely Charles Allen and Riccardo Fois, according to Scotto.

Allen spent the past season as player development coach for the Kings. He previously worked as an assistant video coordinator for the Phoenix Suns, Utah Jazz and the Kings before getting promoted to become head of video coordinators and later on as a player development/assistant coach.

On the other hand, Fois worked under Brown for the first half of last season in Sacramento. The 38-year-old Italian coach remained with the team after Brown was fired, but he was not retained after the season.

Brown is not only the connection Fois has to the Knicks organization. He has also worked with Mikal Bridges during their time together in Phoenix.

Fois started his NBA coaching career with the Suns as the director of player development from 2019 to 2021 after serving as director of analytics at Gonzaga, where he worked with future NBA players Domantas Sabonis, Rui Hachimura, Zach Collins and Killian Tillie.  Following his stint with the Suns, he joined Arizona as an assistant coach and worked with future NBA players Ben Mathurin, Christian Koloko, Dalen Terry and Pelle Larson.

Fois is also an assistant coach with the Italian men’s basketball team, which reached the quarterfinals for the first time in 20 years. He also served as a video coordinator for Team USA, under Gonzaga coach Mark Few, which took home the bronze medal in the 2015 Pan American Games.

The 6-foot-2 Fois played college basketball for Pepperdine but went undrafted in the 2009 NBA draft.

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Rick Brunson’s Role Clipped

 

Rick Brunson, Mark Bryant, Maurice Cheeks and Darren Erman are likely to remain, according to SNY’s Ian Begley.

However, Brunson will no longer be the Knicks’ lead assistant coach, a position he held last season, New York Post’s Stefan Bondy reported.

“Mike Brown is expected to hire a new associate head coach, The Post has learned, a move that will change the dynamics in the front of the Knicks bench by giving Rick Brunson a lesser role,” Bondy wrote on July 8.

After Thibodeau was fired, Sam Amico of Hoops Wire reported on Rick Brunson’s presence causing friction among the Knicks players.

“Per Hoops Wire sources, multiple Knicks players have been unhappy with the presence of assistant coach Rick Brunson, the father of star guard Jalen Brunson. What that issue is, exactly, has not been determined, though sources suggested that Rick has had too big a say in things,” Amico wrote on June 4.

Amico added in his report, citing one source, that Rick Brunson is “the person with the most power in the entire organization.”

But under Brown, Rick Brunson will have a lesser role, thus a smaller voice in the team.

“This is what’s best for the organization and the players,” Bondy wrote, citing a league source.