Knicks rumors: Intriguing Mike Brown scenario ‘intensifies’

After swinging and missing on luring a current head coach to New York — the Knicks were denied chances to interview the likes of Jason Kidd, Ime Udoka, and Chris Finch — they have reportedly begun to settle in on Mike Brown, most recently the head coach of the Sacramento Kings, as well as New Orleans Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego as part of the staff.

“The Knicks' interest in hiring Mike Brown as their new coach has indeed intensified, league sources say,” according to NBA insider Marc Stein.

“One scenario that has emerged: New York installing James Borrego as top assistant if [Brown] is the ultimate choice.”

Hiring Borrego would seemingly indicate that the Knicks want some insurance of a former head coach on staff and potentially able to step up if Brown does not work out in New York. But it could also just be a smart move if Brown and Borrego can effectively work together while utilizing their respective experiences.

If hired, this would be the fifth NBA head coaching job for Brown. In 2005, he was hired by the Cleveland Cavaliers, becoming LeBron James' second NBA head coach in the process. After five years, one of which resulted in an NBA Finals appearance, Brown went 272-138 before being fired by Cleveland.

A year later, he became the head coach of Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. He coached just 71 games in L.A.; the Lakers, who had gone 41-25 under Brown in 2011-12, fired him after starting the 2012-13 season 1-4. Brown then returned to the Cavaliers, but he lasted just a single season back in Cleveland, going 33-49 during the 2013-14 season.

Following a successful and much lauded stint as an assistant on Steve Kerr's Golden State Warriors staff, Brown earned another chance at being a head coach when he was hired by the Sacramento Kings in 2022. In his first season in Sacramento, Brown led the Kings to a 48-34 record and the first playoff appearance in 17 years, ending the longest NBA postseason drought of all time. For his work, Brown earned the second NBA Coach of the Year Award of his career (the first coming in 2009).

The Kings lost in Game 7 of the first round to Kerr and the Warriors that year and lost in the Play-In the following season after going 46-36. This past season, the Kings decided to fire Brown amid a 13-18 start.

Borrego first became a head coach on an interim basis in 2015 when he took over the Orlando Magic following the dismissal of Jacques Vaughn. He earned his first head coaching job in earnest in 2018 with the Charlotte Hornets, with whom he went 148-183. His final season, 2021-22, was his most successful, with the team winning 43 games and reaching the Play-In.