While the staff working alongside new Knicks head coach Mike Brown has yet to be finalized, there's one league assistant the team can cross off its wish list.
According to SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley, the Knicks won't be poaching Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego, who was among the candidates who interviewed for the head coaching position last month. The 47-year-old assistant will remain in New Orleans, where he's held in high regard and under contract.
Borrego joined the NBA's coaching ranks back in 2003, and served as an assistant with the Spurs for seven years. He then worked in assistant roles with the Hornets (2010-12), Magic (2012-15), and Spurs again (2015-18) before landing his first head coaching job with the Hornets in 2018. He was fired after the 2021-22 season with a 138-163 overall record.
Brown's tenure with the Knicks officially began on Tuesday, as he laid out his vision for a roster with championship goals in a wide-open Eastern Conference.
“Nobody has any bigger expectations, first of all, than I do. My expectations are high,” Brown said during his introductory news conference. “This is the Knicks… I love and embrace the expectations that come along with it… I’m looking forward to putting a plan in place and working with those guys on both ends of the floor, I love their length, I love their versatility."
Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego, a Knicks target for a lead spot on Mike Brown’s staff, will be staying in New Orleans, per league sources familiar with the matter. Knicks interviewed Borrego for their head coaching position and had interest in adding him to Brown’s…
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) July 9, 2025
