New York finished 33-49 last season, missing the playoffs for the third time in four years. The Knicks lost 36 of their final 53 games and were 16-27 under Herb Williams, who took over after Lenny Wilkens resigned.
"We've got a coach who just came from the NBA Finals, imagine how that feels _ NBA Finals, the promised land of all of basketball," said center Jerome James, who joined the Knicks in August as a free agent after four years in Seattle and has struggled so far in New York. "To go from that high to this low, it's frustrating. He's a proven winner. He's a fighter and he has a host of young guys and veterans who have been assembled together and share that same passion for winning that he does.
"So naturally, right now, it's a trying time for us."
The Knicks are only two games into a tough six-game road swing out West. They play Sunday in raucous Arco Arena against Sacramento, then Monday at Utah. They're visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday and Denver on Friday before going home.
"They're doing fine," Brown said. "I've got to get us where we're comfortable with what we do. You've got to realize what guys' talents are, and hopefully you maximize that.
"We've got to learn how to finish. We've had opportunities to win games and haven't finished very well. We're hopefully going to do better in those respects."
Hardaway and James believe the team's November troubles will become a positive in the long run.
"I'm sure things go through his mind wondering why he's doing it," Hardaway said. "You're human, and you'll be like, 'Man, I've gotten myself into something.' I bet you there have been a bunch of sleepless nights over the last couple of weeks.
"I think it's bringing us closer now because we're the only ones who are going to be able to do it. There's going to be so much speculation going on about where we're going, that we're not going to make the playoffs, this and that, but it's up to us."
