Knicks GM Leon Rose could be on hot seat if Mike Brown coaching hire goes south

Longtime New York Knicks general manager Leon Rose's future with the franchise might be in jeopardy. 

Five-year head coach Tom Thibodeau was let go earlier this summer, on the heels of the Knicks' first Eastern Conference Finals berth in 2000, a matchup with the Indiana Pacers. Rose pivoted, inking the more player-friendly head coach Mike Brown and signing veteran free agents Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson.

According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post, anything short of an Eastern Conference Finals appearance next spring would be considered a massive failure for Brown. New York, again, has made exactly one such appearance in a quarter century after. No on-court result is guaranteed.

Still, Knicks fans have reason for optimism under the new Mike Brown regime. A two-time Coach of the Year with the Sacramento Kings and Cleveland Cavaliers, Brown could luck into a deep playoff run thanks in part to Achilles tendon tears to rival All-Stars Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, Tyrese Haliburton and Damian Lillard, formerly of the Milwaukee Bucks.

New York also finished with an impressive 51-31 record last year, securing the East's No. 3 seed in that process.

Thibodeau, an intense coach known to ride his vets hard to the point of burnout, notched a 226-174 regular season record and a 24-23 playoff record (including three second round matchup wins) with the Knicks, including four playoff appearances in four of Thibodeau's five years.

Brown can essentially port over Thibodeau's defense, while implementing a fresh pace-and-space approach on the other end.

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