Knicks make sizable coaching staff changes

The New York Knicks are overhauling their coaching staff amid the arrival of new head coach Mike Brown.

New York is parting ways with their assistant coaches Andy Greer, Dice Yamamoto, Daniel Brady, and Othella Harrington, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reported Friday. Bondy notes that all four were assistants under fired ex-Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau.

Additionally, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reports that assistant video coordinator Nick Thibodeau will not be returning to the Knicks next season either. Nick is the nephew of the former NBA Coach of the Year Tom.

The 55-year-old Brown, also a former NBA Coach of the Year himself, was just hired by the Knicks earlier this month to officially replace Thibodeau. While Brown was obviously not the team’s first choice for the job, the Knicks are now giving him all of the leeway that he needs to succeed in the new position.

It is generally pretty customary for teams to allow their new head coaching hires to build out an entire staff of their own. Thus, the mass departures from the Knicks are not all that surprising.

However, the Knicks still have some interesting dynamics in play here since it seems that at least two assistants from the Thibodeau era are being retained. Veteran coach Maurice Cheeks, who joined the Knicks’ coaching staff in 2024, still appears to be continuing with the team. Additionally, assistant coach Rick Brunson (the father of Knicks star Jalen Brunson) is sticking around as well, albeit in a demoted role according to recent reports.