New York Knicks: Five worst coaches in team history

2) Larry Brown (2005 – 2006)

After winning an NBA championship with Detroit in 2004, Larry Brown returned to his hometown to attempt to resurrect the Knicks, who had just completed their fourth consecutive losing season. In many ways, Brown’s tenure with the team under James Dolan’s new right-hand man Isiah Thomas was the realization point among Knicks fans that ownership was a major problem.

Brown was fired after a disastrous 23-win season. Signed to a record contract, his final payout needed to be settled in court. There was in-fighting between him and Isiah. There was an angry star player in Stephon Marbury. There was bloated contracts in Jerome James. There were failed trades in Eddy Curry. The recipe for the ultimate Garden disaster was originally written in Larry Brown’s season with the Knicks.

Brown recently said his open relationship with the media ultimately cost him his job, but there were a whole mess of problems. While David Fizdale, comparatively, struggled to win basketball games with the Knicks, for the most part, he separated himself from the drama of MSG. Larry Brown put himself right in the middle of it.

The Hall-of-Fame coach is obviously not the second worst coach on this list in terms of career accomplishments—not even close. But for his time in New York, he is the second worst coach in franchise history.