PTI - Is Mike Brown a GOOD Choice for the Knicks?

Episode Date: July 2, 2025

Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser discuss the Knicks, the Florida Panthers, and the Las Vegas Aces. Plus, Taylor Twellman joins the show to talk US Soccer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey, sports fans, the ESPN app has all of ESPN all in one place. The ESPN app is your home to thousands of live events, ESPN shows, and originals across every ESPN network and service. And now you can check if you already have ESPN Unlimited as part of your TV package for no additional calls. Visit activate.esPN.com to learn how to access your account or sign up, then start streaming in the ESPN app. It's all of ESPN all in one place. Sign up or activate now. Pardon the interruption, but I'm Mike Wilbon. I got treatment in a hyperbaric chamber this morning, Tony. You ever been in one of those?

Tony Kornheiser, you know, I try to avoid things that remind me of coffins. Well, it's glass or plastic. I mean, it's clear. Let me put it that way. So, you know, you don't feel like you're in an MRI machine. I didn't feel claustrophobic. It felt fine. It felt like Michael Jackson, except no chimp and no glove.

That's not a cold tub, though, right? That's not a cold tub. No, no, no, no. I'm not doing that. No, I'm not doing any cold tub. Oh. Uh-huh. Welcome to PTI, boys and girls.

In today's episode, The Panthers are maneuvering for a third straight Stanley Cup, a good night for Aces, and Taylor Twelman joins us to break down tonight's Gold Cup semi between the United States and Guatemala. But we begin today with reports by the athletic and ESPN that Mike Brown is expected to be the the next head coach of the Knicks.

Brown has coached four different NBA teams. Two of them were Cleveland, his ten years separated by three seasons. Brown was coach of the year in Cleveland in 2009, coached of the year in Sacramento in 2023, and of course, fired by both teams as well as the Lakers. Well, Von, how should the Knicks feel if they end up with Mike Brown? Well, Tony, if you talk about professional coaches in the world, Mike Brown has a resume that glitters.

I mean, first of all, he's done difficult things. Nobody wants to do like follow a legend. Hello, Phil Jackson. He's coached big stars, the biggest of stars. Kobe, LeBron, Steph Curry, and all the people that they may have teamed with at some point in time. He coached them. He's coached under pop. He was on the bench, not just on the bench with Steve Kerb.

But when Steve Kerr had those back issues, right? And you had coaches Walton and Brown had to do real coaching. They had to really work and gain the confidence of those people. There's nothing on Mike Brown's recipe. If you're going to talk about replacing Tibbs, who we all know is one of the great defensive coaches in the last 25 years in the NBA, Mike Brown has been that level of defensive coach, but he's also had the number one offense.

And so you say, okay, what are we getting? Maybe that's different. And maybe there are similarities to Tibbs, and those may be good, but there is a lighter touch. He's maybe more collaborative than Tibbs has been known to be. so, you know, it may not be the guy that you had up in lights that you wanted on the marquee first, but Mike Brown's a hell of a coach for a long time in the NBA. I love the wording of the question.

The wording is the question is, how should the Knicks feel if they end up with Mike Brown? Like, he's a consolation prize. Like, you don't get the all-expenses paid trip to Europe, but let's give you a gift card. Mike Brown's record in regular season games in the NBA is 454 and 304. he wins at a percentage of 59.9%. His record of playoffs is 50-40. You know, he wins more than he loses. He took LeBron James to the finals in Cleveland,

and he took Sacramento to the playoffs when they hadn't been there in 17 years. Now, yeah, it gets fired because everybody gets fired. You know, first prize is the Cadillac and second prize is a steak, knives, and third prize is you fired. But he's a professional coach, and he's being hired if it has.

happens by a management that is amateurish. Every single thing the Knicks have done, including firing Tom Thibodeau, has made them look worse, day by day worse. So he is, Mike, and I'll get out of here on this, Mike Brown is on some level better than the Knicks deserve right now. I'm done. Coming from a longtime Knicks fan observer, Tony, that you should get the last word on that, and you will.

Because we're going to move now to the two-time. defending Stanley Cup champs, Florida Panthers, who were somehow keeping the band together. In the last few days, the Panthers have agreed to extensions with Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand, and Aaron Eckblad defying a history that's seeing top teams have to part with stars due to cap constraints. Tony, how realistic is it to you right now that the Panthers will win a third straight cup? So you are telling me that they kept all their important free action. agents. And I assume they still have Kachuk, and I assume they still have Bobrovsky. And they have now been to the Stanley Cup final three years in a row. And two years in a row they won it. And it was

easier this year than last year, because this year took them six games. And last year took them seven games against the same opponent. And now you're asking me, does this upgrade their chances of winning again? And I would say, sure, because unless, unless Gretzky and Lemieux and Orr and a walking through that door, I'm going to take, I'm on take Florida. And then, Mike, and then if they win again, that's a long way from winning, but if they win again, then we use the word

dynasty. Because three in a row was a big deal. Gretzky's Oilers did not win three in a row. The Penguins with Lemieux and Yager and later, Crosby, they did not win three in a row. The Canadians won five in a row, I believe, in the late 50s. They won four in a row in the late

70s. The Islanders won four in a row in the early 80s. But if they come back, if Florida comes back and they make it again for four in a row and win it again for three in a row, that's a big deal. It is, Tony, but I'll take the field and I want to get to the history of what they've done. And you

can do this in Florida because there's some incentive in places that I'm going to name in a second like California and Illinois and Pennsylvania, there's something called state taxes and you might not feel as enriched when you sign that deal in those states as you feel in Florida. But I'm

going to mention some teams now. The black, Blackhawks, Penguins, Kings. Well, and Tampa does have that in Florida, but those first three, they won a couple, Tony. The Blackhawks won three. And then I would look up on opening night when they're raising the flag to the roof of the United Center. And I would say, wait a minute, where's half of our damn team? They're gone because the really difficult rules of the NHL made you, forced you to get rid of those guys. And so the Blackhawks won three in five years, but they couldn't go after three in a row.

really they had a chance once. And those other teams did too. I mean, the Kings had that chance. The penguins had chances. The lightning. And so the NHL, I'm upset that my franchise didn't get the benefit of this. But if you're a fan of the Panthers, and now you're right, they're going to have a shot at building a dynasty when other capable teams with capable management did not.

Did not. It's tax codes. You can sign for less money because you get to. keep more money in a state like Florida, which is why 30,000 people that you know try to live there half the year for tax purposes. Let's move to baseball. Only 30,000. Last night saw three stellar pitching performances. Paul Skeens, five innings for the Pirates allowing no runs, getting no decision in a game Pittsburgh eventually won. Yoshinovo Yamamoto went seven innings for the Dodgers, allowed one run in an easy win for the Dodgers over the White Sox.

Jacob de Gras, six innings for the Rangers allowing two runs as Texas routed Baltimore. Wilbon, Which one would you most want the rest of the way this season? I love Yamamoto, but he is the White Sox. It's like going against a college seat. No, no, no, White Sox, no. And the Orioles, I know they're coming on a little bit, but no, no, no, no. Paul Skeins went against the St. Louis Cardinals, okay? And Paul Skeens, until recently, I know the Pirates have won that preposterous four games

by seven runs or more, whatever that ridiculous stat is. but they've had like the worst offense in baseball for most of the season. He gets no run support and Skeens goes out there. And I know it was 88 pitches. It wasn't like, you know, Bob Gibson or Fergie Jenkins going 130 and nine plus innings. But he went out there and he blanked the Cardinals. I will take Paul Skeens anywhere, anytime, and walk into a dark alley and go against anybody.

I want schemes. Yeah. Yeah, it's interesting. You're preaching to the choir here because I love Skeens and I'll get to it in a second. But last week you talked about the Ms and how the Ms beat Paul Skeens and you indicated to me on the show that Paul Skeens wasn't all that. Okay, so just totally have that on the record. I just said I'll take the Ms. No, you did. Yes, you certainly did. You've been junking Paul Skeens for two years now, especially when he started the All-Star game and you said he didn't deserve to do that. I remember we could look up the tape. Look, all of these pictures are great, right? They're all great. At the moment, DeGrom is what?

He's 9 and 2 and a 2-1-3 ERA. Went six innings at least in his last six starts. Yamamoto, 8 and 6, 250-ERA, retired the last 10 in a row yesterday, the last 10 right in a row. Skeens only has four wins. He's 4 and 7, 203 ERA. Like you, give me Skeens. Give him to me this year, given to me for the next 10 years. Because in his last 12 starts, you want to talk about getting no support, in his last 12

starts. He has one win. He's one in five and his ERA is one eight four and he has 76 strikeouts and 73 innings. He is a great pitcher at the moment on a bad team. A team that's won five in a row but a bad team and we've seen this before. We saw it with Garrett Cole. Like the guy gives up nothing and doesn't even get the decision. He's pitching in hard luck right now. Let's take a break. Real quickly for the record. I don't like schemes because he's in my division. He's a great picture. What I said is I will take schemes and Ms. every day while I root against them with every fiber of my being. Don't ever say I junk skeins because I'll tell.

You did. I'll come out with money out of my own. I'm going to pay skeins to put him in a club uniform. Are you crazy? Fantastic. NIL money for schemes as well. Let's take a break. Coming up, what's it stick for the U.S. men's soccer team tonight against Guatemala? We're going to ask Taylor Twelman. There's somebody in Scheme's life who knows a little bit about NIL money too. We'll also ask you about Zlatan, your boy,

calling Messi's teammate statues who run as if they're carrying bags of cement. Come on now. Zlatan. I take schemes. Zlatan is the best. Zlatan's reluctantly. Pardon the interruption is brought to you by

Charles Schwab. Own your tomorrow. The U.S. men's soccer team takes on Guatemala tonight in a Gold Cup semi-final, which makes it a perfect time to bring back the lead analyst for MLS season pass on Apple TV, our friend Mr. Taylor-Twellman, and let us start with this, what has impressed you so far in their running the Gold Cup, what has impressed you about the U.S. men's team, and what still needs work, do you think? Tony, one thing that's impressed me is that there's actually a pulse within this group.

And for the first time and a long time, we saw the real real. grittiness of the red, white, and blue come out. And I've been highly critical of the personality of this team. We've talked about the individual quality that this team has, and whether they're with the Gold Cup team or not. But we're talking about, can you roll up your sleeves and be gritty? And when they missed the penalty in the quarterfinal against Costa Rica and then got into a scuffle, guys, I know this sounds very simple, but you saw the group come together. You saw the group look at the Costa Rica side and look at the players that were in their face. and say, we're done with this.

We're done with this, and we're going to take care of business. That is something we have always had. The fact that we've even had to question that, that's a bigger concern. So I love the fact that within this group of players, I've seen a pulse. What I need to see more of is quality. I've got to see quality. And especially in the semifinal tonight against Guatemala, on paper, they should win this game four or five nil.

So should Canada, and Canada lost. So you cannot not use the home field of view. that's going to be in St. Louis. It's going to be a heavily American crowd. Can you punch Guatemala in the face and show the quality that is within the group? I still haven't seen enough quality on the field from the group. However, I believe that there's a pulse which is giving me positive light. Well, a lot of that, of course, we're going to trace to Maricio Pachitino at some point.

Maybe now. So if he's not on a hot seat, Taylor, he's certainly in a bright spotlight. has your assessment of him moved much at all in recent weeks? No, but how remarkable is that you guys are now talking to me after about 72 hours ago that there was a rumor float around before the quarterfinal against Costa Rica that Mauricio Pochitino spoke with Brentford about their vacant job. Now, he is unequivocally denied that, but you guys know this. You've been in sports longer than I have.

There could have been a conversation or two. However, I haven't seen anything tactically that's changed. I haven't seen anything within the personnel that has changed. But I saw emotion. Because when that camera panned to him after winning the penalty kick shootout against Costa Rica, I saw the real passion and he's looking into the camera screaming and showing that he is 100% in this job in this moment. But those rumors were strong, false, true. it doesn't matter to me that the primary league will always be knocking down the door for maricio

Pochitino but when he won the penalty kick shootout he may have won my attention because you cannot fake that emotion that he showed in the camera and i think he may have won the group of players for the moment well of course that sets up tonight let's go back to guatemala we mentioned it already Taylor, what actually is at stake here? If we shred all the stuff about what could be and what might be, what is actually at stake? Well, first off, you're going to play for a final if you win the game, Michael. So first and foremost, you've got to hold serve. You're at home.

It's going to be a pro United States crowd in St. Louis. So that's the first, and that's the macro level. But the micro level is this. Individually, you're playing for your chance to play in the World Cup, in the biggest World Cup, at home, for the red, white, and blue less than a year from now. So the Tillmans, the freezes, the lunas of the worlds that have shown real well in this tournament, you've got to continue that. Can you be the positive player that you've been throughout the tournament and cement yourself

in the final 26-man roster less than a year from now? But more so, you need collectively as a group validation. Usri, we're talking about this tournament before the tournament started. And there's the conversation about politics not here. McKenny's not here. Way is not here. Robinson's not here. So right away, the collective on the outside says, well, this is the B or the C team. Internally, that doesn't matter. Collectively, you've got to validate that you're still good enough, even as a B or C team, to win a continental tournament. I said it when the tournament started. It was Canada's to lose. They lost. Now it's the United States that

are favored to win this tournament. You have to get the job done to give you some positivity. going into your club season, and more importantly, going into the World Cup, less than a year from now. We will get you out of here on this. We're going to leave the Gold Cup behind and get to something that Wilbon cares about a lot more. And that is after watching into Miami, and you're tight with Messi. After watching into Miami get crushed by PSG in the club World Cup, the great Zlatan called Messi's teammates.

Here's a quote, statues who run as if they're carrying bags of cement, unquote. reaction? Hold on. I got to ask Messi, permission if I can answer this. Messi, can't. Okay, cool. I can't. Slatan's the best quote in all sports. He was once asked, what did he get his wife for his birthday? And he said to the reporter in Italy, nothing. She's already got Zlatan. He's as good as it comes when it comes to a quote, guys. I will say this, though. If you notice what Slotan said, he didn't name the three old Barcelona Messi friends because those are as qualified of players as there is. Suarez, Bousquet, and Alba. Is he wrong? No, those guys are at the end of their cycle. They're at the end of the career. But this is also the team that Messi picked. So it is what it is.

But Zlatan, call me at the end of the year because I have a sneaky suspicion. Messi Miami may have something to say in the regular season of MLS. This is fabulous. Thank you so much for being on the show. Thank you so much, man. Appreciate you. Good senior boys. All right, Wilbon. Taylor has top ten odds of winning that celebrity golf tournament in next week in Lake Tahoe that you've been in. Wish him luck now. Wish him luck. Ooh, good luck.

He doesn't need it. He's good. Long money for me, boys. Long money. Let's take one last break. Still to come, show Hey, or Tani does something only one Dodger has done before. And the Indiana fever win the mid-season tournament without Caitlin Clark. You know how I feel about these mid-season tournaments in basketball.

They're trying to copy. soccer. They can't get their own identity. Let's steal something. Happy time people. Happy 30th birthday Ryan Murphy. Murphy holds the Olympic record in the 100 meter backstroke, which he set in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. Murphy has a total of nine Olympic swimming medals, including five gold medals, 100 meter backstroke, 200 meter backstroke, four by 100 mixed medley relay, and a couple in the 4x100 men's medley relay. The backstrokes are specialized event. There aren't that many medals available to backstrokers.

The problem with being an American male swimmer is Michael Phelps. Phelps is bigger than everybody. Phelps has 23 Olympic gold medals. His shadow looms large. He could be right behind me right now on the golf course because Phelps is out here in the desert, playing golf more often than swimming now, though maybe not right now where it was 116 like two days a. Happy anniversary Joe DiMaggio. This is obviously posthumous, but on this day 84 years ago,

the Yankee Clipper hit a home run to left field in Yankee Stadium over the head of his hitting rival Ted Williams. That hit gave DiMaggio Major League Baseball's longest single-season hitting streak at 45 games, surpassing the record We Willie Keeler set in 1897. Ultimately, DiMaggio hit in 56 straight games, a record that hasn't been challenged since Pete Rose got the 44. in 1978. The closest since Rose was Philadelphia's Jimmy Rollins, getting to 38 over 2005 and 2006.

I know some records have fallen in baseball where records are more important to any other teams for in North America. But Tony, we're not seeing 56, are we? It's not going to happen. No. No. No. We're not seeing 512 wins, and we're not seeing 57.

No, we're not seeing that. Happy Trails, Francisco Comasana. The Argentine singles player fell in Wimbledon's second round to Frenchman, Quaranton Muttet. This result is in the show for just one high leg, in which Moutet fakes a smash and instead executes a between-the-legs drop shot. Tennis players can hit shots behind their backs and through their legs. They're fabulous.

Every once in a while is a show-off move. He'd done something similar against Novak Djokovic in the French Open. Does this feel a little show-offy to you, Wilbon? I mean, maybe, but not in the context. His opponent went between the legs on the previous shot. How much showing off can you do if you're greeted with that before you hit your shot? All right, let's go to the big finish. The Diver beat the links for the WNBA Commissioner's Cup.

I know your thoughts. Yeah, because I'm not 24 years old and I don't do cups in the middle of the season. Wake me when the playoff start. The Astros shut down Yordon Alvarez after the slugher suffered and set back. with his fractured right hand. Big loss? Yeah, he's a great hitter. He's only played in 29 games this year. He's a great hitter. They're a good team. He's a great hitter. The Pistons landed former heat shooter, Duncan Robinson. Is that a big deal?

Yeah, Duncan Roberts is a 40% shooter from three career, and we don't know what's up with Malik Beasley. So, yes, it's a big deal. Shohei hit his 30th last night. That's significant, isn't it? He's a great player. We can talk about him and Aaron Judge every single. single day. Last one, the Marlins have won eight in a row. Do I hear nine from you? Do I hear nine? Uh, no. There's ten and a half still behind Philly. I'm not going to get excited about that streak yet. We're ahead of the mats, though. We're out of time. Trying to do better the next time. I'm Tony Kornhizer. I'm Mike Will Vaughn. Same time tomorrow, knuckleheads.