The details of Mike Brown’s Knicks contract are coming into focus.
Brown, 55, inked a four-year deal worth $40 million to serve as the replacement for the fired Tom Thibodeau, according to SNY.
The Knicks decided on Brown as their new coach earlier this week after a monthlong coaching search, one that involved reaching out to plenty of current NBA coaches — including Jason Kidd, Ime Udoka, Billy Donovan and others — before settling on someone who was fired in-season last year but has collected a .599 winning percentage alongside two Coach of the Year awards.
Mike Brown coaches the Kings during an April 4, 2024 game. Getty Images
When Brown signed an extension with the Kings in June 2024, six months before Sacramento fired him, the deal gave him a salary bump to $8.5 million per season, according to ESPN at the time.
But the Kings followed two seasons where they collected at least 45 wins with just a 13-18 start in 2024-25, which led to Brown’s firing.
The Knicks coaching search stumbled in the beginning, after they shockingly fired Thibodeau, with teams continuing to reject their interview requests, but Brown emerged as one of the top candidates — and became the first to get a second interview.
Mike Brown (r.) is pictured during a January 2024 game. Getty Images
That eventually led to an agreement on a contract, which hasn’t been formally announced by the team.
Brown will take over a roster that advanced to the Eastern Conference finals last year before falling to the Pacers in six games, and the Knicks, at this stage of the offseason, appear on track to return most of their core from 2024-25.
They added Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele in free agency to improve their depth, essentially replacing Cameron Payne and Precious Achiuwa, and only made one pick (Mohamed Diawara) in the second round of the draft.
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The continuity wasn’t enough to convince owner James Dolan and president Leon Rose that Thibodeau — despite four postseason appearances across a five-year stint and consecutive 50-win seasons — should remain the Knicks coach, despite landing an extension of his own.
Instead, the Knicks opted for Brown, who has experience coaching plenty of superstars and will get his chance to help the Knicks reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.