Hubie Brown
Photo Credit: ESPN
Over the past 75 years, Brown has developed a comprehensive basketball résumé while learning from and teaching some of the game’s legendary figures.
Hubert Jude “Hubie” Brown was born on September 25, 1933, in Hazleton, PA. His family moved to Elizabeth, NJ, when he was three years old. He graduated from St. Mary of the Assumption High School in 1951 (Elizabeth, NJ), where his teams won state championships in football, basketball, and baseball. At Niagara University, Hubie played baseball and basketball for the legendary coach Taps Gallagher and graduated in 1955 with a degree in education. After his time in the U.S. Army, Hubie returned to Niagara and earned a master’s degree in education. He played briefly for the Rochester Colonels of the Eastern Professional Basketball League before the league folded.
Brown’s coaching career started at St. Mary’s Academy (1955-1956) in Little Falls, NY, where he coached basketball and baseball. He spent nine years coaching football, basketball, and baseball at Cranford High School and Fair Lawn High School in New Jersey before entering the college coaching ranks as an assistant coach at William & Mary (1967-1968) and later at Duke University (1968-1972).
Brown’s professional coaching career started as an assistant coach for the Milwaukee Bucks (1972-1974) and included leading the Kentucky Colonels (1974-1976) to an ABA (American Basketball Association) Championship in 1975; the Atlanta Hawks to three playoff appearances during five seasons (1976-1981); and the New York Knicks to two playoff appearances during five seasons (1982-1987).
After a 16-year absence, while he was working as a television broadcaster with the USA Network, TNT and CBS, he returned to coaching with the Memphis Grizzlies (2002-2004) During the 2003-04 season, his first full season at the helm, he led the Grizzlies to one of the biggest turnarounds in NBA history, winning 50 games while leading the team to its first-ever playoff berth. Brown was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year, winning the award for the second time in his 15-year NBA coaching career.
Brown joined ABC and ESPN as an NBA analyst after retiring as the coach of the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2004-05 season. On Sunday, February 9, 2025, the 91-year-old Brown, a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame broadcaster, concluded his legendary career after 35 seasons broadcasting, including 18 NBA Finals.
For just over 50 years, Brown was involved with the NBA as either a coach, clinician, or broadcaster. He was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005, the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006, the National Sports Media Hall of Fame in 2022, and the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in December 2024.
Brown married Claire Manning in 1960 and remained married to her until her death in 2024. The Brown’s raised a family of three daughters – Molly, Virginia, and Julie, and a son, Brendan.