In addition to watching the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals, basketball fans are also watching history unfold.
For the third time in playoff history, two Black head coaches are manning the sidelines in the championship series. Veteran Mike Brown of the New York Knicks is matching strategy with second-year coach Mitch Johnson of the San Antonio Spurs.
Although many Black head coaches have led their teams to the NBA Finals, seeing two on the sidelines simultaneously has been a rare occurrence.
The first time came in 1975 with Al Attles of the Golden State Warriors and K.C. Jones of the Washington Bullets. It happened again in 2024 with Joe Mazzulla of the Boston Celtics and Jason Kidd of the Dallas Mavericks. A fourth occasion occurred in 2017 when Brown was an interim coach for Golden State against Tyronn Lue’s Cleveland Cavaliers.
“It means a lot to see this,” said former Cardinal Ritter College Prep coach Preston Thomas, who is a Missouri Hall of Famer. “It reminds me of the time when we watched that Super Bowl where we saw black coaches Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith on the sidelines. I am very excited to see this. We’ve always had the aptitude and know-how to be successful, but we can also inspire the athletes to play to the best of their abilities.
Thomas also thinks that Brown’s and Johnson’s presence in the Finals can inspire young black coaches who aspire to coach at the highest level.
“It should get them to understand that you have to pay some dues, but if you stick with it and are willing to learn and work, you could be a head coach in the NBA. You’ve heard about coaches who never played but were managers or film guys and just learned their craft and the nuances of the game. Yes, it can happen to you.”
Although the 56-year-old Brown and 39-year-old Johnson are at different career stages, both served as assistant coaches for the Spurs early in their careers under Hall of Fame head coach Gregg Popovich. Brown went on to head coaching stints for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings before landing in New York at the beginning of the season.
Johnson was the Spurs’ lead assistant, but he was named the interim head coach during the 2024-25 season when Popovich stepped down due to health reasons. He was soon after named the permanent head coach.
“I thought this was very big,” Thomas said. “To see “Pop” basically hand-pick his own replacement was tremendous to see.”
Johnson is the son of John Johnson, who was a starting forward on the Seattle SuperSonics, who won the world championship in 1978. The coach of that Seattle team was Lenny Wilkens, who was the third black head coach to ever lead a team to the NBA championship.
Bill Russell was the first in 1968 as a player-coach with the Boston Celtics and Attles was the second with Golden State. Also on the list of black NBA champion head coaches are K.C. Jones (Boston Celtics, 1984, 1986), Doc Rivers (Boston Celtics, 2008) Tyronn Lue (Cleveland Cavaliers, 2016) and Joe Mazzulla (Boston Celtics, 2024)