The Knicks are closing in on hiring Mike Brown to be their next head coach. After a lengthy hiring process, the Knicks landed on the right candidate. Brown is an offensive savant who will bring a needed change of voice to the locker room. However, for him to succeed, it is imperative that the front office and ownership stay out of his way and let him pick his own staff.
The Knicks' owner, James Dolan, has a history of meddling in team decisions. Usually, those decisions have turned out poorly. It seems like Dolan's fingerprints are all over the Tom Thibodeau firing and, reportedly, he insisted on being the one to sign off on the next coach.
Now that the Knicks are seemingly just hammering out logistics, Dolan and the front office must now hand the reins to Brown. The next head coach should be the one to decide who his assistants are.
Who could the assistants be?
The Knicks have an interest in Pelicans assistant James Borrego. They interviewed him for the head coaching vacancy, and there were reports that they were considering having him back in for a second interview. It is not just the Knicks that like Borrego; Ian Begley of SNY reported that Brown likes him as well and views him as an important addition to their staff.
Considering Borrego is currently employed by the Pelicans, the Knicks can't simply hire him, and New York knows better than possibly any team in the league that it can be difficult to poach coaches from teams. Because of that, it is unclear how likely an option he is.
It is not hard to see why both Brown and the Knicks like Borrego, though. He is an analytical coach who has prior head coaching experience from his days in Charlotte.
What about Rick Brunson?
Things get a little more complicated when it comes to Rick Brunson, the father of the Knicks' franchise player, Jalen Brunson. Insider Marc Stein reported that Brunson's job is expected to be safe, along with some other key members of the staff from last season.
Now, it is easy to understand why Brunson's job is considered safe. You don't want to upset your team's best player as you enter your championship window. As far as the rest of the staff goes, though, Knick fans should hope that Brown was given the option to evaluate them and see if their visions align. Because if this is Dolan's decision, history tells us we are in trouble.