Though Mike Brown coached the New York Knicks past the Cavaliers to get to the NBA Finals, he has more than a few fans in Cleveland, including Ideastream Public Media sports commentator Terry Pluto.
"He's one of the most unpretentious guys, and I've never seen a guy just kind of roll, not just with the punches, with the body slams (of the NBA)," Pluto said.
After coaching LeBron James and the Cavaliers to several playoff appearances starting in 2005, and the NBA Finals in 2007, Brown has had a strange trip back to the Finals:
- The Los Angeles Lakers for a little more than one season
- Back to the Cavs
- An assistant with championship teams in Golden State
- A short, but successful, stint in Sacramento
- Hired by the Knicks just last year, and now, two wins away from leading a team to an NBA title
In the middle of all that, Brown volunteered with the Westlake football program as a middle school assistant and was a frequent fan at St. Edward, supporting his two sons.
"We had, at the Plain Dealer, we had a picture of him, like with water bottles," Pluto said, referring to a photo of Brown on the sidelines at a game.
"I have to be the highest-paid film guy for any eighth-grade football team in the country," Brown said at the time. He was still collecting about $2 million from the Cavs the first time he was fired in Cleveland.
Brown made plenty of money after being fired in the NBA before his contract was up: in L.A., Cleveland (twice) and Sacramento.
"Now, you might say, 'what's with him?'" Pluto said. "Why is he getting fired? But you have to know the NBA. The average lifespan of a coach in the NBA with its team is three years ... This is nuts. These people are crazy in the NBA."
It appears, at least one year in, that Brown will have staying power in New York, especially if he delivers a championship. But he came in under difficult circumstances.
"He was actually hired in a tough spot in New York because the previous year, a coach named Tom Thibodeau, had taken the Knicks to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years, and they fired him because they felt he wasn't the guy to get them to the NBA Finals," Pluto said "Mike Brown was then hired with one thing, you better get them to the Finals."
But, Pluto said, Brown came into Cleveland under similar circumstances as a 35-year-old first time head coach, tasked with leading LeBron James.
"He was brought in because of LeBron James' first two years; they missed the playoffs," Pluto said. "(Owner) Dan Gilbert walked out to the press conference with a clock. He's holding this clock at the press conference. He says, 'Mike's on the clock.' Mike's a young guy just getting his first taste of being a head coach."
Pluto also relayed a story about Brown's dealings with the media that likely helps him in New York. Brown was going to bench Zydrunas Ilgauskas, putting an end to the center's consecutive games started streak. Pluto told Brown he intended to criticize Brown unless he could provide a reason for the benching.
"(Brown said) 'Oh, I understand that ... all I can say is, you do your job, I've done mine,'" Pluto said "Nothing personal. We're fine. That's how he is. I mean, he's a real pro, and I think that's why he could handle New York, handle LeBron ... all those early years, that was tough. Basically, if anything went wrong, it wasn't LeBron's fault his first time here, it was his fault."
Known as a defensive coach, Pluto said Brown has adapted an old school "high post" offense, improving on Thibodeau's performance last year.
"That means you put your big man at the top of the key, throw him the ball, and there's a bunch of guys picking and moving around, and the big guy is passing the ball to others," Pluto said. "His offense turned into a machine."
"He's won 60% of his games," Pluto said "He is now in the NBA Finals with his second team, neither of whom, when he took them there, were expected particularly to go there."
Not bad for a coach who has been fired four times, twice by Cleveland, and is the most famous former assistant at Lee Burneson Middle School in Westlake.
