The New York Knicks’ offseason coaching search took an unexpected turn after Indiana Pacers assistant Mike Weinar, once considered a candidate for New York’s associate head coach position, surprisingly departed the Pacers.
The Pacers announced Weinar’s exit on Aug. 22, though the reason for his departure remains unclear. Just weeks earlier, the longtime assistant had withdrawn from consideration for the Knicks’ associate head coach opening, citing family reasons, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Post.
Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle, who worked with Weinar for more than 17 years, praised his colleague in a statement.
“Mike Weinar has been a trusted friend and loyal colleague,” Carlisle said. “He is a proven winner with two National Championship rings with Florida in 2006 and 2007, and an NBA Championship from our 2011 title run in Dallas. He also played a major role in this year’s historic Finals run with the Pacers. Professional success has followed Mike everywhere, and no doubt will continue.”
SNY’s Ian Begley first reported on Weinar’s conversations with the Knicks before his withdrawal.
Knicks Pivot to Jent After Series of Rejections
Getty Head coach Chris Jent of the Charlotte Hornets looks on in the first half of a 2025 NBA Summer League. He is set to join the New York Knicks as the associate head coach under Mike Brown.
With Weinar no longer an option, New York quickly turned to Charlotte Hornets assistant Chris Jent, finalizing a deal to make him associate head coach under newly hired Mike Brown.
The Knicks had faced a series of setbacks during their search. Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Pablo Prigioni, New Orleans Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego and Dallas Mavericks assistant Jay Triano all declined interest in the position.
Jent, 55, was seen as the most experienced assistant available. He recently guided the Hornets to a Summer League championship in Las Vegas, marking the first title of any kind in the franchise’s history. SiriusXM NBA Radio host Frank Isola previously reported Jent was the frontrunner for the Knicks’ opening.
The hire also reunites Jent with Brown, as the pair previously worked together on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ staff from 2006 to 2009.
Jent has spent more than two decades on NBA benches and in the G League. He briefly served as Orlando’s interim head coach in 2005, led the Bakersfield Jam in 2015-16, and most recently was the longest-tenured assistant on the Hornets staff. As a player, he won an NBA title with the Houston Rockets in 1994 — ironically against the Knicks.
Brunson’s Role Reduced, O’Connor Joins Staff
Getty Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks talks with his father, New York Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson, during the second half against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Jent will replace Rick Brunson, the father of Knicks star Jalen Brunson, who held the associate head coach role last season under Tom Thibodeau. Brunson will remain on the staff but with reduced responsibilities, according to the New York Post.
That change follows a June report from Hoops Wire’s Sam Amico that multiple Knicks players were uneasy with Rick Brunson’s influence. One source even described him as “the person with the most power in the entire organization.”
The Knicks also added Brendan O’Connor from the Los Angeles Clippers to run the defense. O’Connor previously worked in New York under Larry Brown and maintains a strong relationship with Knicks executive William Wesley, also known as “World Wide Wes.”
Wesley, a longtime power broker in NBA circles, was key in helping lure O’Connor away from Los Angeles, according to Isola.
Now with Jent in charge of the offense and O’Connor overseeing the defense, the Knicks head into training camp with a revamped coaching staff under Brown — after a process marked by rejections, reshuffling, and a surprise departure in Indiana.
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