The New York Knicks are gearing up for a reunion with a familiar face, as the team approaches a deal with a former coach from the ill-fated Larry Brown era.
A source tells Frank Isola of Sirius XM NBA that New York is nearing an agreement with L.A. Clippers assistant coach Brendan O’Connor, who also worked as an assistant under Brown. O’Connor will now serve under newly minted New York head coach Mike Brown (no relation). He also “has close ties” with William “World Wes” Wesley, a longtime Knicks executive.
Knicks and Mike Brown closing in on a deal with Clippers assistant coach Brendan O’Connor, according to a source. O’Connor worked as a Knicks assistant under Larry Brown and has close ties to Knicks executive William Wesley.
— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) July 31, 2025
Per Stefan Bondy of The New York Post, O’Connor will essentially serve as the club’s defensive coordinator. Thibodeau was infamously a brilliant defensive tactician, and thus replacing him will require some dedicated personnel.
O’Connor had been with the Clippers through several regimes, having started off as an assistant coach on the 2013 iteration of the squad under then-head coach Doc Rivers.
With a defense molded by O’Connor and Jeff Van Gundy, the Clippers ranked fourth defensively in 2024-25, finishing with a 50-32 record and the Western Conference’s No. 5 seed.
O’Connor had worked as an assistant under Brown on the championship-winning 2003-04 Detroit Pistons. While there, he developed a friendship with now-New York executive Wesley. Bondy notes that New York continues to explore options for an associate head coach who can handle the other side of the hardwood, however. Bondy notes that the Knicks have come up fruitless in their recruiting of James Borrego, Jay Triano and ex-Knick Pablo Prigioni so far.
Former Thibodeau assistants Rick Brunson (father of Knicks All-NBA point guard Jalen), Maurice Cheeks, Mark Bryant, Jordan Brink and Darren Erman are expected back, Bondy notes. O’Connor will join fellow new hires Charles Allen and Riccardo Fois as the latest additions under Brown.
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