Mike Brown reveals key role Knicks’ Dillon Jones played during historic championship run

The Knicks’ path to the NBA title involved contributions from everyone on the roster — even if they did not play a single postseason minute.

Head coach Mike Brown revealed that forward Dillon Jones, who appeared in just seven regular season games for the Knicks, played a key role in the team’s playoff preparation.

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“Throughout the course of this run, I got help with the messaging from different people,” Brown said to Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart during a new episode of the “Roommates Show” released on Tuesday.

“I’m gonna tell you guys, you may know this or may not, Dillon [Jones] was fabulous.”

Dillon Jones poses with the Larry O’Brien trophy after the Knicks clinched the NBA championship. NBAE via Getty Images

Most fans didn’t even know Jones was part of the organization until an ill-conceived banner outside City Hall that bore his name and Patrick Ewing’s sacred No. 33, sparking some unexpected parade-day outrage.

The 24-year-old played a total of 39 minutes for New York, but it was his experience before joining the Knicks that proved invaluable.

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As a rookie, the 26th overall pick spent the 2024-25 campaign with the Thunder, who defeated the Pacers in seven games to win the NBA Finals.

Head coach Mike Brown revealed that Jones played a pivotal role in the Knicks’ postseason preparation — despite not playing in the postseason. John Jones-Imagn Images

The Weber State product appeared in 54 regular season games and saw some sporadic action in the postseason as Oklahoma City sought to avenge a second-round postseason exit a year prior.

“I spoke to Dillon often during this playoff run because he had just gone through it with Oklahoma City,” Brown added. “I said, ‘Hey, when you guys were in this position, what was [head coach] Mark [Daigneault] saying? What was [general manager] Sam Presit saying? What were you guys saying to each other? What do you think here?”

In his first season as Knicks head coach, Brown preached collaboration and communication, a philosophy that led to 13 straight postseason wins and the organization’s first title in 53 years.

The Knicks ended the organization’s 53-year…

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Publish date : 2026-07-01 02:45:00

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