GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Once they fired Tom Thibodeau, the New York Knicks made their expectations abundantly clear. Even for those who simply produced the franchise’s most profitable season in 25 years, and even for those who’ve obtained the help of the prince of town, simply getting near enjoying for an NBA championship is now not sufficient.
The coach they employed to select up the place Thibodeau left off, then, understands his task.
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“Shoot, I do not know if anyone has any increased expectations than me,” newly minted head coach Mike Brown instructed reporters Tuesday on the Knicks’ follow facility, the place the group is about to open coaching camp forward of a preseason journey to Abu Dhabi. “I like being ready the place you are feeling expectations. To me, which means there’s one thing of significance that you simply’re doing. […] We all know what our job is at hand. It begins tomorrow, and it is one step at a time. It is each day, each follow, each shootaround. It is in entrance of us. Now we have to assault it with abandon. And if we do, and we embrace what our roles are, we embrace the tradition that we’re attempting to construct right here, then good issues are gonna occur.”
Some good issues have already occurred for New York coming into the 2025-26 NBA season — a marketing campaign that can see the Pacers, Celtics and Bucks all regrouping after devastating accidents and roster re-shuffling, creating an influence vacuum atop the convention that the powers that be at MSG count on the Knicks to fill.
Knicks coach Mike Brown speaks to the media on the Knicks’ coaching facility on September 23, 2025. (Photograph by Dustin Satloff/Getty Photos)
(Dustin Satloff through Getty Photos)
Swingman Mikal Bridges signed a four-year extension price $150 million — barely lower than the utmost quantity he may’ve commanded — permitting group president Leon Rose and his entrance workplace to proceed to function beneath the second apron (for now) as they labored to construct out a roster gifted and deep sufficient to face up to the grueling 100-game marathon between opening evening and a Finals berth.
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“I feel that if I got here right here and preached how a lot I need to win and tried to take each greenback and make it tough for the group, then I might simply appear to be a fraud,” Bridges mentioned Tuesday. “That is not who I’m. I need to win dangerous. No matter it takes.”
Rose added a pair of anticipated contributors — high-scoring former Sixth Man of the 12 months Jordan Clarkson and versatile French huge man Guerschon Yabusele — on a budget, giving New York newfound depth and affording Brown loads of choices for rounding out a rotation that, the coach mentioned Tuesday, he’d sometimes favor to go “9 and a half to 10 guys” deep.
“I attempt to play as many guys as I can,” Brown mentioned. “Even once I was in [Sacramento, coaching the Kings], and we had an damage throughout the course of the season, there was a time limit towards the tip of the season the place I began a two-way man in Keon Ellis. I am gonna attempt to play who might help us win.”
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Brown’s first main “who to play” determination: figuring out his most well-liked fifth starter to fit in alongside Bridges, the All-NBA tandem of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Cities, and mauling 3-and-D ahead OG Anunoby.
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All through final season, that spot belonged to Josh Hart, finishing a lineup that performed far and away probably the most minutes of any five-man unit within the NBA … and one which obtained outscored by 40 factors in additional than 700 minutes between the beginning of January and the tip of the postseason. The persistent gradual begins got here again to chunk New York within the first two video games of the Japanese Convention finals towards the Pacers, prompting Thibodeau to take away Hart from the primary 5 in favor of middle Mitchell Robinson — a transfer that Hart truly advised — from Sport 3 via Indiana’s eventual conference-clinching Sport 6 win.
Since Brown took the Knicks’ reins in July, hypothesis has swirled about whether or not the brand new coach would reinsert the dynamic however shaky-shooting Hart into the beginning lineup; follow the 7-foot Robinson, who made a serious affect as an offensive rebounder and rim protector after getting wholesome final season, to bump Cities to energy ahead; or take into account a superior taking pictures possibility, like reserve guard Miles McBride, to reduce the effectiveness of defenses stashing wings on Cities and maximize the potential explosiveness of a five-out assault headlined by the Brunson-Cities two-man recreation.
After a few months of learning his new membership, adopted by observing some non-obligatory pre-camp exercises, Brown on Tuesday revealed his preliminary discovering: that he wants some extra time, and to look at all his gamers working in reside motion, to determine that fifth spot out.
“That can materialize all through camp,” he mentioned. “I feel it is too early to go in and say, ‘That is what is going on to occur.’”
Requested for his take, the ever-playful Hart instantly responded with a joke — “I imply, if I don’t begin, I’ll in all probability ask for a commerce” — earlier than each stating his case and, like Bridges in his contract feedback, placing a particular tone.
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“I feel I’m a starter within the league. I feel I should be a starter within the league,” mentioned Hart, who had a profession 12 months, averaging 13.6 factors on 52.5% taking pictures to go together with 9.6 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.5 steals in a league-leading 37.6 minutes per recreation final season. “However on the finish of the day, it’s what’s finest for the group. , final 12 months, I talked about sacrifice the entire time, and sort of that servant mentality, and being a great steward of my items, and people sorts of issues. So I feel it might be extraordinarily egocentric for me to go on the market and demand to start out.
“So, you already know, no matter Mike desires to do or doesn’t need to do, I’m cool with. Time will inform what that’s. I’mma determine it out how I’ve to determine it out.”
One thing else Hart will evidently have to determine? Tips on how to navigate an ongoing challenge with the ring finger on his taking pictures hand, stemming from an damage he sustained within the playoffs. Hart underwent a process geared toward resolving it again in July, however mentioned Tuesday that he “sort of reaggravated it considerably just lately,” and that he’d probably need to play with a splint on it this season — an addition to his appendage that he hopes gained’t impede his recreation.
“, me, personally, I hate enjoying with something on my fingers,” Hart mentioned. “I really feel like I don’t have a great really feel for it. It would take just a little getting-used-to.”
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There’s loads for Brown and his new prices to get used to — and simply as necessary because the “who to play” part of that exploration is the “how you can play.”
Throughout his tenure in Sacramento, Brown preached the gospel of tempo — of sprinting the ground off misses and makes alike, of entering into the frontcourt earlier into the shot clock, of sprinting into actions slightly than going via the motions — and, within the course of, produced one of many NBA’s best offenses. (“I performed towards these Sacramento groups when he was there,” Bridges mentioned. “, it was not enjoyable guarding these guys.”) Within the Thibodeau/Brunson period, although, New York extra often operated at a glacial tempo, ending within the backside 5 in possessions per 48 minutes in every of the final 5 seasons.
Brown is aware of two issues for positive: That should change, and the journey to altering it begins with one fairly easy step.
“That is the very first thing: inform ‘em to run quicker,” he mentioned with amusing. “, there are issues in what we attempt to do and what we train. For us, the most important factor is attending to the corners. You gotta have guys which are able to attending to the corners shortly. If in case you have guys that may get to the corners, particularly guys who can shoot the ball and or make performs like we do on this group … then that is going to flatten the protection, and it may begin the dominoes to fall, with the flexibility to drive and contact the paint and kick and all these different issues. So, emphasizing that, whereas placing a way of urgency or a way of significance on attending to the corners, goes to be big. And if our guys embrace that, which I really feel they are going to, that’ll begin the entire course of the fitting approach.”
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The very best begin to that course of for Brown? Getting Brunson to purchase into it. The 29-year-old guard has risen to superstardom on the power of at-times plodding orchestration as a pick-and-roll ball-handler and isolation surgeon; he led the NBA in time of possession, seconds per contact, dribbles per contact and on-ball proportion final season.
In equity, Brunson’s iron-fisted management has led New York to top-seven finishes in offensive effectivity three years working. As Brown sees it, although, just a little bit much less may wind up producing an entire lot extra.
“The largest factor that I need to do for him is attempt to get him — in addition to everyone else — simple photographs,” Brown mentioned. “And one of many best photographs within the recreation of basketball is a sprig 3. I’m a giant proponent of touching the paint and spraying that basketball for a catch-and-shoot 3, so inside what we do, we’ll attempt to get him a variety of these conditions. […] I am wanting ahead to seeing if we are able to proceed to attempt to discover methods — particularly once we begin enjoying video games — we attempt to discover methods to get him some simple catch-and-shoot appears to be like. As a result of the ball will probably be in his fingers, particularly down the stretch, so to make the sport simpler all through the course of the sport goes to be a giant factor.”
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Brown mentioned that, from what he’s seen throughout non-obligatory exercises, Brunson has appeared on-board with the thought of extra often getting off the ball — to permit Bridges, Cities, Anunoby, Hart and the remainder of New York’s playmakers to prepare dinner. And Brunson, for his half, seems like he’s up for the problem.
“Clearly, as soon as we get began, we’ll see how the whole lot goes,” Brunson mentioned. “However I am very open to, actually, something proper now, as a result of the whole lot’s new, and I simply need to win. […] We’ve obtained to clearly be keen to adapt and be keen to alter, and work out how we’re going to be one of the best group doable transferring ahead. If you wish to win, you’ll do it. It’s that easy.”
Simply what that can appear to be, precisely, stays to be seen. Hart sees a “very collaborative” strategy wherein “everybody’s going to have the ability to make performs, to learn, to react — and if you do this, everybody’s glad.” Cities theorized the introduction of Warriors-style actions wherein Brunson slaloms and slingshots across the court docket, rocketing round off-ball screens to seek out clear appears to be like.
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Golden State’s symphonic movement offense wasn’t inbuilt a day, although, and Brown understands that taking on a group as near the highest of the mountain because the Knicks really feel they’re requires a deft contact.
“You at all times attempt to have a look at your guys’ strengths everytime you’re implementing one thing, and attempt to put them in the absolute best place to have success — first, to assist the group, however you even have to remember what their particular person targets/aspirations are, and particularly primarily based on what their expertise degree is,” he mentioned. “Attempting to mesh that, that’s positively my job. And I feel the way in which that we play on each ends of the ground will improve what they do very nicely.”
If he’s capable of strike that steadiness — protecting the core of what’s made New York top-of-the-line groups within the East over the previous few seasons, whereas getting extra out of the roster Rose has assembled on each ends of the ground — the Knicks may meet these vaulted expectations, and attain the championship spherical for the primary time this century.
“We perceive the chance that’s in entrance of us,” Cities mentioned. “We’ve simply obtained to go on the market each single day, discover methods to get higher each single evening, and provides our greatest model to our followers each single evening.”
