Mike Brown has noticed something important about himself.
He made a Finals appearance as a head coach, back in 2007 with the Cavaliers. He won four championships as an assistant — in 2003 with the Spurs and in 2017, 2018 and 2022 with the Warriors. He’s certainly used to coaching teams with high expectations.
But he’s changed his approach. And he believes the Knicks can benefit from it.
“More mature, more experienced, more seasoned,” Brown said after practice Wednesday. “If you want to get specific about it, I didn’t message great back then. It was more about the work. That’s the one thing I always knew I had control over, is I can outwork this guy if I want to — it’s my call, that’s easy. Therefore, if I’m gonna do something with our team, our team is gonna outwork that team, it’s easy.
“Now it’s based more on feel, a little bit smarter with my work and the team’s work. I do feel like I message better. I learned all these things being around great players and great coaches and just over time, learning from your mistakes I feel like I have a better opportunity now, because I’ve been through a lot, to be more present than before. When you’re present, it helps you be able to make adjustments more timely on both sides of the ball.”
Having been around those championship teams, what were the common traits and similarities between them? Do the Knicks share them?
“It’s what our standard is about,” Brown said. “They were different teams. I was the head coach of Cleveland and we got to the Finals with a young team. Assistant coach in San Antonio with a veteran team. Assistant coach in Golden State with a veteran team. If there was something that was similar with all those different teams, they all somehow, someway sacrificed throughout the course of the year.They found a way to be connected, especially at the right time. They all had an unbelievable competitive spirit and the belief in the process and each other was always there. And everybody was OK holding one another accountable. They all embraced that.
“I feel that this group has trended towards that way.”
Everyone, including OG Anunoby, practiced Wednesday, Brown said. Anunoby exited the penultimate game — a win over the Raptors last Friday — with an ankle injury, but it didn’t appear to be serious. He, like the majority of the main rotation players, sat out the meaningless Knicks finale Sunday.
Wednesday’s positive update means he should be good to go for Game 1 on Saturday.
Jalen Brunson described Madison Square Garden’s playoff atmosphere simply.
“It’s something that we could sit here and explain,” he said Wednesday. “But no one really knows it unless they experience it.”
