Did the Knicks make a big mistake with Rick Brunson?

Did the Knicks make a big mistake with Rick Brunson?

You guys heard about it, but you probably learned it from the post. Mike Brown is expected to hire a new associate head coach. That means Rick Brunson will take on a lesser role. So, Jonathan Mackery of Knicks Film School is on to try and convince me if this is the right decision or not. JMC, what’s happening? Your star, the star player of the franchise just happens to be my son, but I get a demotion. So tell me why this is going to be the right or or wrong thing. Uh in terms of basketball X’s and O’s and overall continuity, not just the optics or perceptions. Is this a good move by Mike Brown and staff or No. Well, I mean, you know, to use an analogy, it’s it’s not like Rick Brunson’s going from like the manager to like the fry cook, you know, or or even I don’t know what’s below fry cook in a in a kitchen. He’s going from like the the manager to the assistant manager. It’s a it is a demotion and I and I I understand where you’re coming from because obviously he’s Jaylen Brunson’s son, but I think part of the issue here is like, you know, you said X’s and O’s. We have no idea what Rick Brunson’s X’s and O’s are because of like individually because it’s just he’s been under Tibs for so long. So I could only assume that his X’s and O’s beliefs are the same as Tom Thibido’s X’s and O’s beliefs. And I think the organization pretty clearly, you know, let its opinion on where, you know, what those were when they let Tom Thibido go. As far as the continuity piece of it, I think the important part is that Rick Brunson is staying on along with reportedly several other members of the staff. So, it’s not like you’re doing a full changeover, which I think for a veteran club, some of whom have been together for for a few years, you know, Brunson, Josh Hart, Duce McBride, Mitchell Robinson, I think it’s good that you didn’t do a full turnover, but I, you know, in that story, it als I I think everybody would agree maybe this is for the best. the the dad in me, and you’re a dad as well. The dad in me wouldn’t have a problem with it because I get to stay with my son, but the professional in me would have an absolute problem taking a demotion. Sources out there are saying that having him as the top assistant is a bad look for the franchise. So, come on, man. Be frank with me. Let’s be 100. Since Rick Rick took over as top assistant after Johnny Bryant left for Cleveland, have you or any of the franch of the fan base looked at him as some sort of distraction or conflict of interest? So, up until this season, the answer was definitely no. And in fact, you know, when Jaylen Brunson signed the extension, a very below market deal last summer, I think universally in the fan base, they were like, listen, if you want to build a statue to Rick Brunson, have at it as long as Jaylen Brunson doesn’t go anywhere because we have been so starved for a leader the likes of which we have now with with Jaylen Brunson for so long. Um, now this season you had the incident in the preseason with Dr. Denzo chirping a little bit back and forth and then towards the end of the year you had some reporting that maybe certain players thought that Rick Brunson’s role was a little bit too big. I think for me looking at, you know, a team last year that I suspected all along, maybe, you know, the locker room wasn’t as good as it could be, and I wonder if it’s a coincidence that Mike Brown in his introductory press conference talked about things like trust and selflessness and cohesion and all concepts that I think a lot of fans suspected was missing from this group last year. So, I again didn’t have a huge problem with it, but again, focusing on the present and and the future, I think this is probably the move that is in the best interest of everybody involved. When it comes to those players in that report, Rick Brunson doesn’t make you or or not make you hit jump shots in practice. That’s on you to fight for more minutes. So that’s one of those things where I feel like, you know, as a former player, not NBA player, a lot of guys get upset when they’re not getting playing time and they point fingers, but they hardly look within. It’s like, “All right, I dropped that pass or I I had this missed assignment. These are more of the reasons why I’m not playing as opposed to just pointing the finger at a coach.” So I kind of take those reports when it comes to those players with a grain assault. So, as we kind of look forward to who’s going to be that next guy, it’s been reported by our guy Ian Begley of SNY that Pelicans associate head coach, uh, James Burggo, who we all know as a Knicks target for that lead spot on Mike Brown’s staff, is going to be staying in New Orleans. There any names out there that you and the fan base likes that you guys think Mike Brown should make his top assistant? Yeah, I mean I think it’s tough because you know it again similar thing with Rick Brunson. You these guys don’t have a track record. Most of the associate or assistant head coaches out there. Um one guy that I have my eye on and I’m going to lean on the reporting of uh my buddy Mark Stein who does great work with the the Stein line on Substack is Darvin Ham. So Darvinham, you know, fans probably most recently remember his stint with the Lakers, which, you know, didn’t go terribly, but also, you know, didn’t blow anybody away. But Darinham for like close to a decade before he got the head job with the Lakers was one of the more highly thought of assistant coaches in the league. The reason why I like the partnership with Mike Brown, couple of reasons. For one, he was actually already an assistant under Mike Brown when Mike Brown was the head coach of the Lakers a little bit more than a dec decade ago. And if you go back even further than that, uh Darvin Ham actually played for a season when Mike Brown was an assistant head co or assistant coach, excuse me, with the Washington uh franchise way back early in his career and like in the middle of Darvin Ham’s career. So those guys have a good connection. Again, Darvin maybe wasn’t fit to be a head coach in the league, but I think everybody has thought very highly of him as a basketball mind. So maybe bring him in and and who knows, maybe he gets that associate head coach job that uh they wanted Bargo for but unfortunately couldn’t get him. I like that because you know my football background the quickest path or to becoming a head coach or rebecoming a head coach, I don’t know if that’s a word or not, is being one of the top coordinators or one of the top assistants on a championship-like team. Knicks go and win a championship with Darvin Ham as the uh top assistant, then that is an easier pathway for him to get a head coaching job. Uh again, Jay Mack, appreciate you hopping on with this, my man. I appreciate uh you calling on me as always.

Jonathan Macri, the Dean of Knicks Film School, joins Brandon London to discuss Mike Brown’s decision to move Rick Brunson down the bench to find a new associate head coach for the Bockers.

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