Tyler Kolek has become a revelation for the New York Knicks. He’s also just a sophomore with under 1,000 total minutes of NBA experience who’s going to make mistakes the team can’t afford—just like he did against the San Antonio Spurs on New Year’s Eve.
And head coach Mike Brown let him know it by yanking him from the game, and never putting him back on the floor.
With around eight minutes left in the fourth quarter and the Knicks up by 11 points, Kolek conceded a pair of threes to the positively sweltering Julian Champagnie. The first wasn’t so egregious. Kolek sank a little too low on a De’Aaron Fox drive (and Luka Kornet dive), but closed out to contest the shot. Champagnie drilled it.
Love this coaching from Mike Brown.
— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) January 1, 2026
Screams at Kolek (rightfully so) and benchs him for dropping back instead of chasing the red-hot shooter off the 3PT line
Then, after emotions cool down, Brown goes over to Kolek on the bench and explains himself. Then daps him up. pic.twitter.com/xJipur8sBE
The second miscue was less forgivable. After OG Anunoby missed a corner three, Keldon Johnson grabbed the rebound, and threw an outlet to Champagnie. Kolek was back on defense, but he continued to backpedal and conceded plenty of breathing room to San Antonio’s red-hot combo wing.
Champagnie pulled up in transition, completely unimpeded, and put down his ninth trey of the game. Brown immediately called a timeout, went up to Kolek, ripped him from the game, and had him watch the remainder of the final frame from the bench.
Mike Brown’s tough love should help Kolek in the long run
Young and inexperienced players need the latitude to struggle—even fail. The Knicks do not have that kind of margin for error. They are a Finals-or-bust, if not title-or-nothing, type of contender.
Juggling player development amid towering expectations is absurdly difficult. New York is doing a pretty darn good job so far in the Brown era, not just with Kolek, but also Mohamed Diawara, and even Kevin McCullar Jr. Pulling Kolek out of the Spurs game is an extension of this approach.
You could easily make the case the Knicks were better off keeping Kolek alongside Jalen Brunson during the next few minutes. The same could also be said about Deuce McBride, or McCullar. In Kolek’s case specifically, though, New York will be better off keeping him on his toes.
Brown has celebrated his point guard’s confidence, and tongue-in-cheekness. As he should. Kolek is making a difference for this team. The Knicks have comfortably won the minutes he’s played since re-entering the rotation over a month ago—including when he plays without Brunson. Giving him the benefit of the doubt is important.
It’s also just as important that Kolek understands the stakes, every single night, on every possession, and the short leash he has as a 24-year-old attempting to help a contender as a result. These moments force him to reflect. Not that he wouldn’t anyway. But it hits differently when you’re being scolded and benched in the spotlight.
This moment could loom large during the Knicks' playoff run.
Kolek will learn from this, because he has no choice. The next time he’s getting on defense and a scintillating shooter is dribbling up the floor, he probably won’t dip as low. Instead, he’ll bring more pressure.
In the grand scheme of things, this seemingly throwaway midseason moment could be the difference between Kolek cracking the playoff rotation, or bowing out of it—between Brown trusting Clarkson down the stretch, or rolling with his sophomore
Heck, just as it was versus the Spurs, it could even be the difference between a postseason win, or a loss.