NBA FINALS: KNICKS VS. SPURS

June 13, 2026

Mike Brown

New York Knicks

Game 5: Pregame

Q. With all your family being here, can you talk about what that support has meant for you? In addition, the tactical guy you are, the meticulous guy you are, did you get that from your father?

MIKE BROWN: Yeah, my dad served in the Air Force for 26 years. He definitely has that Air Force background. I think that's where I got my OCD from. Dad, sorry. He's pretty meticulous with whatever he goes about in his business.

It's awesome having family around. Look, I'm a big family guy. To be able to have that support, whether you're at home or on the road, and that love for anybody, it can uplift them. Whether you win or you lose, they don't care. They just want to be there for you, and they want to support you.

It's always good to have that around, especially being in San Antonio.

Q. The team has been the whole series with that 0-0 mentality.

MIKE BROWN: Yeah.

Q. Tell me how you can keep that mentality in a moment like now when you are a few hours before this game?

MIKE BROWN: Well, the reality of it is it's hard, but you just keep telling your guys to stay present, stay present, stay present.

For us, another thing that we've talked a lot about with our guys is possession over outcome, possession over outcome. Just worry about the next possession. Lock into the details, play as hard as you can, give everything you can until that next possession. Don't worry about the outcome of the game or the series.

Q. There are crazy numbers out there, how many Knicks fans actually bought tickets for this game tonight. Have you heard about that? Are you excited to see how it might feel? We know the Spurs fans are crazy, but this maybe might be pretty filled with Knicks fans.

MIKE BROWN: Well, our fans have been fantastic all year. During the Playoffs they've tried to show up and show out wherever we are, not just in the arena. We see them walking around the area that we're staying in. We see them in the hotel.

Just to know they're as enthused and rabid as they are, it's second to none. We love having our fans. We love having them in the building. We love having them around.

Hopefully they'll be able to cheer just as loud as they do at home here tonight.

Q. Because you are a people guy, with family and friends around you, how has it been for you the last couple of days? While they may be inclined to start thinking ahead a little, what has it been like for you to try to not get blown away by the enthusiasm around you about what might be coming?

MIKE BROWN: My family knows me. They know that I'm going to keep it real with them. If they get a little too ahead of the show, I'll reel them back in.

We haven't had a problem with that the last couple of days for me. Just stuck to my normal routine. Went to dinner with my wife, my two stepkids. Came back, did a little work. Watched a little bit of a series called "Kings & Conquer," I think it's called. I finished the last episode last night. It's a really good series.

My wife told me the main guy in there is from "Game of Thrones." I didn't know that until at the end of the series, then I recognized him. But finished that last night.

After that, talked to one of my sons, went to bed. Pretty easy, mellow night for me last night.

Q. The coaching ups and downs, you were Coach of the Year and then fired the next year twice? Is that right?

MIKE BROWN: I honestly don't know. I know I was fired a lot and I was Coach of the Year a couple of times (smiling).

Q. My point is you were head coach for a while, then you weren't, then you were, then fired again, even after doing something historic in Sacramento. Was there a thought you might not get another bite at the apple? What was your mentality about knowing after the Kings job if you got yet another chance what you would do with it?

A. The reality of it is, when I became an assistant at Golden State under Steve -- Steve Kerr is a fantastic human being. Their players embraced me, the city embraced me. It was so easy to not think about getting another job because I thoroughly enjoyed working for Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors as an assistant coach.

Hate to say this, but when Steve was available to coach, there was zero pressure. I was able to enjoy myself at night and have a good time, while being an assistant coach of one of the greatest teams of all time.

For me, I didn't even think about getting another opportunity.

Sacramento -- I obviously interviewed a couple times, didn't get them. Then Sacramento came. That gave me an opportunity, which I appreciate. You go through that. After I got fired from there, I wasn't thinking about it because my wife and I, we were running all over the world. We were in Sydney, we were in New York, Mexico, St. Barts. Next thing I know they're asking me to interview here. I dialed in here.

Being with the Warriors helped, and being able to travel around the world helped, not thinking about the next opportunity.

Q. When the Knicks fired Tom Thibodeau, they were going through interviewing, wanting to interview other coaches and being denied permission. Was there a part of you that was wondering maybe it's destined for me or not to get this job? Did you go through the process of assessing your coaching career when all that was going on?

MIKE BROWN: No, I mean, I've been around a long time. This business is just as crazy as any other business.

I'm pretty good at trying to control what I can control. I had zero control over who else was interviewing, who was denied permission. I had zero control over that.

I just did the best I could in the interview process. I went about my business and waited until it was either going to progress or end.

I felt that I had great chemistry with Leon Rose and Quentin Dolan and Mr. Dolan when I met with him. But you never know. You try not to guess because if you guess it could drive you crazy because you don't really have the answer.

I was pretty nonchalant about it as time went on. I just let it unfold the way it unfolded.

Q. You mentioned the passion that Knicks fans have. A lot of that passion stems from the dark days of this franchise. How much of that dark history are you privy to? Does it mean anything to you to be ushering in this new era of golden New York basketball?

MIKE BROWN: I've said this, I've thought about it even before I got the job. There are a couple of franchises that are pretty iconic just because of the history that they have, the location that they're in, sometimes even the building that they're in. New York is definitely one of the few that you could say that to in all three facets.

Everybody goes through their ups and downs. I don't really think much about the tough times that they had, because everybody has tough times, including individuals. You just want to try the best you can to be a part of whatever you can to bring joy to the city, to the organization.

At the end of the day, the chips are going to fall how they fall. I feel blessed, fortunate, lucky, to be a part of what is going on now. Hopefully we can keep trying to figure it out the right way going forward.