After a lengthy search, the New York Knicks are reportedly hiring Mike Brown to be their next head coach. Brown will replace Tom Thibodeau, who was fired in June despite leading the Knicks to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years.
Brown will become the Knicks' head coach after he was fired by the Sacramento Kings midway through the 2024-25 season. Though Brown won Coach of the Year with the Kings after leading them back to the postseason in 2023 for the first time since 2006, he was unable to bring them back to the playoffs the following year and was fired after a 13-18 start last season. Even though the Kings signed Brown to a new extension worth $8.5 million per year just over a year ago, he still got fired soon after.
Brown is reportedly signing with the Knicks on a four-year, $40 million deal, according to Ian Begley of SNY TV. Since Brown is quickly receiving a new head coaching position, the Kings will save money. The Kings originally would have had to pay Brown the money for the remaining two years of his deal, but due to an NBA clause, the Kings likely won't have to pay the full remainder of his contract. The clause details that once a coach gets hired by a new team, some or all of their salary from their previous team is offset by the new contract.
Instead, the Knicks will be paying Brown his new salary. And unless Thibodeau gets hired as a head coach by a new team in the near future, the Knicks will also be responsible for paying Thibodeau's remaining contract.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Details of Mike Brown's Reported Contract With Knicks Revealed.