Knicks' Mike Brown Addresses De'Aaron Fox Relationship Before NBA Finals
New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown will face his former star player De'Aaron Fox in the 2026 NBA Finals.
Fox helped the San Antonio Spurs return to the promised land for the first time in 12 years. They eliminated the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals.
Brown coached Fox during his time with the Sacramento Kings from 2022 to 2024. The pair helped end the franchise's 16-year playoff drought in 2023.
Brown's ties to San Antonio also run deep. Brown came up under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio. He served as a Spurs assistant from 2000 to 2003 before launching his own head coaching career.
Speaking to the media on Sunday, Brown addressed his relationship with Fox and the Spurs franchise directly.
"They definitely want to beat me, and I want to kick their [expletive]," he said. "I love them, and you can always love them before and after, you know?"
Relations between Fox and the Kings soured after Sacramento fired Brown early in the 2024-25 season.
Fox publicly stated he would not play for another Kings coach. The Spurs acquired him in February 2025 via a three-team, seven-player deal involving Sacramento and the Chicago Bulls.
In seven-and-a-half seasons with Sacramento, Fox averaged 21.2 points, 6.1 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals.
Brown did not stay on the sidelines long. He replaced Tom Thibodeau at the Knicks helm and guided New York to the NBA Finals in his first season. It is the franchise's first Finals appearance since 1999.
It is fitting that Brown's return to the grandest stage pits him against a player and a franchise he holds dear.
"I had ties to Cleveland, I got ties to San Antonio, and you appreciate the people," he said. "You appreciate the journey, and all that other stuff, but at the end of the day, just like they want to beat you, you definitely want to beat them."
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This story was originally published June 1, 2026 at 7:36 AM.