So much transpired for Mike Brown over the past 13 months.<\/p>\n
His firing as the Sacramento Kings\u2019 head coach on Dec. 27, 2024, stunned the sports world and sparked outrage among opposing coaches<\/a>.<\/p>\n His hiring as the Knicks\u2019 head coach in July followed a similarly unexpected parting of ways between that franchise and Tom Thibodeau.<\/p>\n And while the Knicks already played the Kings in Sacramento earlier this month \u2014 marking Brown\u2019s first time facing his former team \u2014 Tuesday night\u2019s rematch at Madison Square Garden offered another opportunity to reflect on the saga.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a look back at everything that led to Brown becoming the Knicks\u2019 head coach:<\/p>\n BROWN BEGINS KINGS TENURE<\/p>\n When the Kings hired Brown before the 2022-23 season, the mission was clear.<\/p>\n Sacramento had not been to the playoffs since 2006, nor had it finished with a winning record even once during that time frame.<\/p>\n Brown arrived with a winning pedigree. As head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Brown advanced to the NBA Finals in 2007 and won NBA Coach of the Year in 2009.<\/p>\n As an assistant, Brown won an NBA championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2003 and three more with the Golden State Warriors in 2017, 2018 and 2022.<\/p>\n Fresh off of a 32-50 season, the Kings were eager for Brown to turn things around.<\/p>\n IMMEDIATE SUCCESS<\/p>\n Brown did just that, implementing a high-powered offense centered on point guard De\u2019Aaron Fox and forward Domantas Sabonis that transformed the Kings.<\/p>\n With an emphasis on tempo and 3-point shooting, the Kings averaged an NBA-best 120.7 points per game in 2022-23 while setting a league record for efficiency at 118.6 points per 100 possessions.<\/p>\n Sacramento finished 48-34 and as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference to snap its 16-year playoff drought \u2014 the longest in NBA history.<\/p>\n The Kings then lost their first-round playoff series against Brown\u2019s former team, the defending champion Warriors, in seven games.<\/p>\n Brown was named the NBA\u2019s Coach of the Year for 2022-23 \u2014 and became the first to win the award unanimously.<\/p>\n SECOND SEASON IN SACRAMENTO<\/p>\n The win-loss record wasn\u2019t all that different in Brown\u2019s second season, as the Kings went 46-36 in 2023-24.<\/p>\n But injuries to Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter derailed the Kings down the stretch, and they dropped eight of their final 13 regular-season games to finish as the West\u2019s No. 9 seed.<\/p>\n The Kings beat the Warriors in the first game of the Play-In Tournament, but they lost to the New Orleans Pelicans in the second round and missed the playoffs.<\/p>\n CONTRACT EXTENSION<\/p>\n With a 94-70 record through two years, Brown signed a contract extension in July 2024 that would pay him $8.5 million annually through the 2026-27 season.<\/p>\n Notably, Fox declined to sign an extension that summer, and later said on \u201cThe Draymond Green Show\u201d<\/a> that he wanted to make sure the Kings showed they could continue to improve and \u201ccompete at a high level.\u201d<\/p>\n THIRD SEASON WITH KINGS<\/p>\n The Kings retooled that offseason by adding DeMar DeRozan and re-signing Monk, elevating expectations going into 2024-25.<\/p>\n But the Kings got off to a 13-18 start \u2014 including 3-11 in games decided by five points or fewer \u2014 before they fired Brown less than seven months after he signed his extension.<\/p>\n Brown finished his Kings tenure with a 107-88 (.549) record.<\/p>\n Sacramento\u2019s decision drew criticism from multiple NBA coaches, with Rick Carlisle saying he was \u201cabsolutely shocked,\u201d Steve Kerr calling it \u201creally shocking\u201d and Michael Malone saying the Kings handled it with \u201cno class.\u201d<\/p>\n Less than two months later, the Kings traded Fox to the Spurs.<\/p>\n \u201cI was like, \u2018Yo, I\u2019ve been here for going on my eighth year. If Mike gets fired, I\u2019ll be going on my fifth coach,’\u201d Fox told ESPN<\/a> in March. \u201cAnd I told them, \u2018I\u2019m not going to play for another coach. I\u2019m going to play for another team.’\u201d<\/p>\n Doug Christie replaced Brown as head coach, and the Kings went 27-24 the rest of the way before losing in the Play-In Tournament to the Dallas Mavericks.<\/p>\n HIRED BY KNICKS<\/p>\n Less than six months after his time with the Kings ended, the Knicks\u2019 head-coaching job became open with their firing of Thibodeau.<\/p>\n The Knicks had just advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000, but they sought a more collaborative voice to take them to the next level.<\/p>\n