# Who is the best coach in New York Knicks history?

> Championship banners, 1990s grind-it-out defense and a modern title run: every era at the Garden has its own bench boss worth defending.

*By YPB Team · Published November 8, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/who-is-the-best-coach-in-new-york-knicks-history*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Red Holzman** — score 1000/1000
   Hall of Fame coach who led the Knicks to their 1970 and 1973 NBA championships and won 613 regular-season games with the team.
2. **Joe Lapchick** — score 622/1000
   Former Original Celtic who coached the Knicks from 1947 to 1956 and took them to three straight NBA Finals from 1951 to 1953.
3. **Tom Thibodeau** — score 466/1000
   Coached the Knicks from 2020 to 2025, won NBA Coach of the Year in 2021 and reached the 2025 Eastern Conference finals.
4. **Mike Woodson** — score 466/1000
   Took over in March 2012 and led the Knicks to 54 wins, the Atlantic Division title and a playoff series win in 2012-13.
5. **Hubie Brown** — score 466/1000
   Coached the Knicks from 1982 to 1987 and reached the Eastern Conference semifinals in 1983 and 1984 with Bernard King.
6. **Pat Riley** — score 0/1000
   Coached the Knicks from 1991 to 1995, won at least 50 games in all four seasons and reached the 1994 NBA Finals.
7. **Jeff Van Gundy** — score 0/1000
   Longtime assistant promoted in 1996 who coached the Knicks to the 1999 NBA Finals as the first eighth seed to get there.
8. **Mike Brown** — score 0/1000
   Hired in July 2025, he guided the Knicks to the 2025 NBA Cup and the 2026 NBA championship, the franchise's first title since 1973.
9. **Rick Pitino** — score 0/1000
   Coached the Knicks for two seasons and led them to 52 wins and the Atlantic Division title in 1988-89.
10. **Mike D'Antoni** — score 0/1000
   Coached the Knicks from 2008 to 2012, the stretch that included the arrival of Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony and the Linsanity run.

Tags: basketball, nba, new-york, knicks, coaches