Will Ex Knicks Coach Hubie Brown Return to ESPN?

Hubie Brown has built a lengthy career at ESPN since his days at the helm of the New York Knicks.

There are hardly any certainties in the modern NBA. Hubie Brown is a welcome exception.

The former head coach of the New York Knicks has been a professional hardwood staple since 1972 when he entered the NBA as an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks. After several stops as a head coach, Brown has made a name for himself to younger fans as a tenured broadcaster with ESPN/ABC after previous stops with USA, CBS, and TNT.

ESPN says it has reached a contract extension with Hubie Brown. He will soon begin his 20th season with ESPN and his 50th season in the NBA. Brown will call games during the season, primarily teaming up with Mark Jones and Dave Pasch.

— Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) August 14, 2023

That run is set to continue, as Richard Deitsch of The Athletic reports that Brown has inked a contract extension with the Worldwide Leader, one that will extend his NBA tenure to a fifth decade. Brown, who turns 90 next month, will call games alongside play-by-play men Mark Jones and Dave Pasch.

Brown has been with ESPN since resigning from his last coaching job at the helm of the Memphis Grizzlies in 2004. He served as the lead analyst for ABC's coverage of the 2005 and 2006 NBA Finals as well as the following 13 championship rounds on ESPN Radio's national broadcasts (2007-19). Brown was also a part of CBS' Finals programming in 1982, 1989, and 1990. 

Brown amassed a 424-495 record in NBA head coaching stops with Atlanta, New York, and Memphis. He also earned an ABA title with the Kentucky Colonels in 1975, putting up a 104-64 mark with the team in two seasons led by Louie Dampier and Artis Gilmore. Brown was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor in 2005. 

With the Knicks, Brown succeeded the team's all-time winningest coach Red Holzman and spent parts of five seasons at the helm (1982-86). He guided the Knicks to the playoffs in each of his first two seasons, guiding the Knicks to at least one series victory in consecutive seasons since a six-year streak under Holzman (1969-74). In each of those two showings, Brown's Knicks fell to the eventual NBA champions but they were able to take the Boston Celtics to seven games in 1984 after a sweep at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Alas for Brown, circumstances beyond his control shortened his New York tenure: star scorer Bernard King suffered a devastating knee injury that caused him to miss the entire 1985-86 season, which also saw a rookie Patrick Ewing deal with ailments of his own. Brown was dismissed after a 4-12 start to the 1986-87 campaign, allowing him to join CBS full-time.

It's perhaps refreshing to see a familiar face return to ESPN's NBA coverage, especially after an upheaval to the top broadcasting team enforced by several layoffs in Bristol. Brown's fellow New York coaching alum Jeff Van Gundy was part of the network's expansive layoffs and another former Knick, Mark Jackson, was also part of the departures. 

Jackson and Van Gundy were part of ESPN's top broadcasting team alongside play-by-play man Mike Breen since 2007 (with the exception of Jackson's tenure as the head coach of the Golden State Warriors). Breen, who also calls local Knicks broadcasts on MSG Network, will now be stationed alongside Doris Burke and another former New Yorker, Doc Rivers. 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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