Just 15 coaches in NBA history won at least 60% of their games in their first eight seasons (counting in-season takeovers only if the coach was retained the following year):
- Phil Jackson
- Pat Riley
- K.C. Jones
- Billy Cunningham
- Gregg Popovich
- Stan Van Gundy
- Chuck Daly
- Tom Heinsohn
- John Kundla
- Erik Spoelstra
- Larry Costello
- Scott Brooks
- Rudy Tomjanovich
- Mike Brown
- Red Auerbach
Of those 15, 13 continued coaching longer. That type of success usually affords more opportunities.
The only two exceptions:
- Billy Cunningham
- Mike Brown
After eight seasons coaching the 76ers – winning 70% of his games and the 1983 championship – Cunningham resigned in 1985. He never returned to coaching.
Brown – who won 62% of his games with the Cavaliers, Lakers and Cavaliers – got fired (again) as Cleveland coach in 2014. Now a Warriors assistant, he’s still waiting for his ninth season as head coach.
Perhaps it’ll come with the Knicks.
Shams Charania of The Athletic:
The New York Knicks are interviewing Warriors associate head coach Mike Brown for their head coaching job, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 22, 2020
Of course, a coach’s won-loss record doesn’t perfectly reflect his coaching ability. Brown had LeBron James in Cleveland and Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles. Talent matters. Brown also got fired quickly as the Lakers went south in 2012. Had they kept him longer, his record likely would have dropped.
But a coach who won 62% of his games is intriguing, regardless of the context.
Intriguing enough to overtake Tom Thibodeau? Probably not.
Intriguing enough for an interview? Sure.
This will be Brown’s second interview with New York, though the Knicks have a new front office with Leon Rose in charge.