Through the first half of the 2025-26 NBA season, the New York Knicks have a few issues to fix if they want to remain title contenders, and celebrity superfan Ben Stiller thinks that starts with head coach Mike Brown.
Over the past few days, Brown has been critical of star center Karl-Anthony Towns, saying after their loss to the Sacramento Kings that he lacked urgency, and after their loss to the Golden State Warriors, adding that he thought the big man’s foul trouble partially cost them the game.
In a post on X, Stiller expressed his frustration with Brown in response to a video posted by New York Basketball on the coach’s recent criticism of Towns.
“KAT got dragged by an illegal Embiid type non basketball play pull down on his ankle that could have injured him. Would have been disastrous if that happened,” he wrote. “Would love to see our coach stand up for his big man.”
While there are still questions about the Knicks as a whole, as well as Towns on the defensive end of the floor, potentially in line to make another All-Star appearance, averaging 20.9 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 2.9 assists on 46.7% shooting, as a solid partner for the currently injured Jalen Brunson.
Mike Brown Calls Out Karl-Anthony Towns Again
Brown, in his first season leading the Knicks, has been outspoken in his recent evaluations of his team’s starting center. A few days ago, he said ‘there was no urgency‘ for Towns at multiple points during their game against the Kings.
“Something happened where he fell down. I think it was, he drove and he fell down,” Brown said. “When you fall down you gotta get up. You gotta sprint down the floor. Even if you’re the last guy down the floor, you gotta get down there, just in case there was a long rebound. Now, there was no urgency.”
Most recently, Brown once again commented on Towns after their loss to the Warriors. Speaking to the media after the matchup, he criticized the big man’s response to yet another one of Draymond Green‘s now-famous trash-talking outbursts.
“Draymond, that’s how he plays, (he’s) always going to be intense…I didn’t think it impacted us,” he said. “But what I did feel was KAT picking up his fifth foul, and and us having to sit him down, that hurt us because we were playing relatively good at the time.”
New York ended up losing the game to Golden State 126-113, as Towns had 17 points, 20 rebounds, and two assists while a +4 when on the court, but he couldn’t get the job done as Brunson was out with an ankle injury.
The Knicks have now lost seven of their last nine games. Brunson continues to play at a First-Team All-NBA level, and they’ve gotten strong performances out of Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and the recently returned Josh Hart from injury, but that hasn’t stopped Brown’s ire of Towns in particular.
Jalen Brunson Injury Update
As mentioned, Brunson missed the Knicks’ latest game against Golden State with an ankle injury he suffered in their loss to Sacramento, as Miles McBride started in his place on Thursday instead.
While there was initially good news, as reported by James L. Edwards of The Athletic, Brunson wasn’t seen leaving the arena in a walking boot or with crutches; he was eventually ruled out against the Warriors.
New York has officially diagnosed Brunson with a right ankle sprain, and for now, he is listed as day-to-day on the injury report. The next chance Brunson will have to play will be on Saturday as the Knicks take on the Phoenix Suns.
But for now, as seen against Golden State, McBride and Hart will likely take on bigger playmaking and scoring roles while Brunson remains on the bench. Hart had five points and ten assists on Thursday, while McBride, Bridges, and Anunoby combined for 71 total points, each with at least 20.
As the deadline approaches, New York is expected to move Guerschon Yabusele and Pacome Dadiet, according to recent trade rumors, and with Brunson out, though potentially not for long, they are expected to target backcourt and wing depth in hopes of a title push.
Ben Stiller Rips Knicks’ Mike Brown For Karl-Anthony Towns Criticism