Mike Brown's resilience, reinvention key to Kings ending postseason drought

SACRAMENTO — The NBA’s Coach of the Year winners list is filled with those who lost. Meaning, they were fired at some point in their careers before winning the award, and almost all were fired after winning it. And the scalps are somewhat surprising in one or both of those regards: Monty Williams, Tom Thibodeau, Mike Budenholzer to name a few.

Then there’s Mike Brown, who was fired not once, not twice, but three times since he won in 2009 with the Cavaliers. In the NBA coaching world, three strikes usually means you’re out, at least for an extended stretch if not for good.

If Brown’s historical significance isn’t already apparent, he also holds one of the fastest dismissal records in history. He was fired by the Lakers just five games into the 2012-13 season, marking the third fastest dismissal to start a season.

Despite facing a setback, he has managed to bounce back and is now a leading contender for the Coach of the Year award once more. This is due to his impressive performance in his first season in one of the most challenging roles in the profession, leading the Sacramento Kings – unexpectedly – to the playoffs. Furthermore, they are not just participating, but have also secured a spot in the top three of the Western Conference, continuously performing well throughout the season and proving wrong those who believed their success was not genuine.

In some ways, then, this coach and this team are made for each other. This was an ambitious marriage, as it turned out, made possible by a shared search for salvation, both sides looking for a basketball cleansing. A man who found his way back to the bench saddle, and a franchise that, after 16 years, found its way back into the postseason.

“It’s been good,” Brown said.

Go inside the Kings locker room as Coach Brown speaks with the team and awards the game ball. pic.twitter.com/Vg0vHqWuqz

— X – Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) March 30, 2023

Hell, yeah.

Ring a cowbell in honor of Brown, applauding his strength, tenacity, and ability to reinvent himself. Strangely enough, also celebrate his luck in being jobless when the Kings reached out last summer to promote the former Warriors assistant. In a way, the Kings were fortunate that Brown, despite interviewing for other positions, was still available.

“Mike was bound to get another opportunity eventually, and he’s really capitalizing on it,” stated Steve Kerr, the coach of the Warriors, who had Brown as an assistant for six years. “Their season has been astounding to watch – the energy, the enthusiasm, the team unity. And Mike has truly excelled. He’s done an outstanding job.”

In assessing Brown’s head coaching history, he was perhaps a victim of some weird circumstances. His first job was with the Cavs and LeBron James, and Brown didn’t cash in with a title, although the front office did him no favors by providing a so-so cast around LeBron. Even Dan Gilbert, the Cavs owner, said firing Brown was a “mistake.”

The subsequent destination was L.A., where the Lakers found themselves in a predicament as Jerry Buss, who was unwell, handed over basketball affairs to his family. The team brought in Dwight Howard and Steve Nash to join Kobe Bryant, but they failed to meet expectations. It was an absolute debacle, from both an anticipatory and a team dynamic perspective, and Brown didn’t even complete a whole second season.

Back to Cleveland, where the Cavs were regrouping after LeBron took his talents to Miami, Brown went 33-49 and was fired after one season. Gilbert mentioned nothing about a mistake this time.

Very often in the NBA coaching business, it’s about right place, right time. This is probably true about Brown, especially when you see how he’s connecting with a developing Kings team but also urged them to think big when training camp opened. Brown’s message: Why wait? Let’s go further than anyone expects. Let’s distance ourselves from our past.

And look where they are.

“I was talking to our guys about goals and one was to make the playoffs, and I said, ‘Let’s be like everyone else and win a championship.’ Don’t set a bar that’s too low,” Brown said. “We’ve been talking positively about our season from Day One and trying to instill that belief in them from Day One has been a big focus of mine.”

The Kings subsequently lost their first four games and then … never looked back, or allowed themselves to fall back again. And Brown has been a big part of that.

He put the ball in the exclusive hands of De’Aaron Fox late in fourth quarters of tight games, and because of that confidence, Fox has developed into one of the game’s best clutch players, with his efficiency and steadiness and ability to win games, much like more accomplished and older players.

“He brought a lot to us, got everyone to buy in from the first day,” Fox said. “He established a good working relationship with the guys. He came in here and told us we were going to be winners, and guys believed in him right from the start.”

Domantas Sabonis also prospered into one of the game’s best big men under Brown and is expected to collect some Kia MVP love from voters. There’s also Keegan Murray, who just recently set the record for most 3-point makes by a rookie. Brown challenged him in another way, too.

Brown recounted his conversation with Keegan, “I approached him and asked, ‘Keegan, if someone were to ask me what you would contribute if your shots weren’t going in, what would I tell them?’ Keegan initially thought I was trying to trick him. I reassured him that it wasn’t a trick question. He replied, ‘Well, I space the floor.’ I responded, ‘I’m 52, overweight, and out of shape, but even I could space the floor if I managed to make a few shots. So, what else can you offer?'”

In other words: Expand your game from being one-dimensional.

Brown has always challenged his players, be they LeBron, Kyrie Irving, or whomever. He’s also a very good communicator, true to his easygoing nature, but also unafraid to instill discipline, which comes from being an Army brat.

Kings forward Harrison Barnes said Brown has pushed all the necessary buttons.

“Barnes said, “He has entered, held all of us players accountable, and positioned us to win games. It’s fantastic that he’s receiving recognition for it.”

Under Brown, the Kings operate one of the most efficient offenses in recent memory and average 121 points per game. They’re also 23-16 on the road; only the Bucks and Celtics have more road wins, which is great company for a Kings team that’s relatively young. And they haven’t had a losing streak longer than two games since they stumbled from the gate back in October.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest Brown’s success with the Kings is partly due to lessons learned from failure, like most coaches before him. For example, Monty Williams was often rigid and temperamental during his run with the Pelicans, yet more mellow and open to suggestions now with the Suns. He’s better off for it. Same for Thibodeau, who after success in Chicago bore the scars from a brief stop in Minnesota before elevating the current Knicks to respectability.

Even the Hall of Famers — Pat Riley, Don Nelson, Larry Brown, George Karl — all grew smarter after getting fired. It’s the circle of life in coaching, where lessons learned are lessons applied at the next stop.

Brown had a strong hunch he’d have another chance, “I just didn’t know when and where.”

Meanwhile, he held an excellent role as the main assistant to the Warriors and to Kerr, an old friend from their Spurs days. Brown played a crucial part in strengthening the Warriors’ defense, a key factor in their championship victory last season. This was especially notable against Luka Doncic and the Mavericks during the Western Conference finals, and later in the NBA Finals against Jayson Tatum and the Celtics.

Kerr’s respect for Brown runs so deep that Brown never had to worry about a paycheck.

“Kerr said, “I consistently reassured him that as long as I was here, he’d always have a job next to me. He was a perfect fit for me. I was ecstatic when he got the opportunity with the Kings, but it left me wondering how I was going to fill his shoes. He was that indispensable.”

Brown was, in the words of Kerr, tremendous as an assistant coach for the Warriors. But how would he fare as a head coach again? Very often in the NBA, coaches get stigmatized, fair or not, as being quality assistants and nothing more. Even worse, once they get two or three cracks at head coaching jobs, they fall into retread territory, which becomes a bottomless pit.

Brown, it seems, is none of that. He found his calling, his spot. And it’s Sacramento, where the Kings needed a coach who could develop young talent and instill confidence not only in the locker room, but a city starved for a winner like none other in the NBA.

“Here, we can achieve victory,” said Brown. “With what we possess, we can secure the win.”

Looking back, the Kings, who haven’t broken a sweat in 16 springtimes, are finally heading to a place they feel is rightfully theirs. As for Mike Brown? He’s already there.

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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.

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