The Multiplier Effect: Change the Leader → Change the Team
- mayadolgin
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
(June 10, 2026 Newsletter)
Last week we looked at what the 2026 Knicks can teach us about teamwork. This week: a closer look at the coach who made it possible – and what Liz Wiseman’s Multipliers reveals about why the same roster is producing completely different results.
Topics: leadership, culture change, Multipliers, coaching, organizational development
Last week, I wrote about five teamwork lessons from the 2026 New York Knicks that we can all bring into our leadership. I also promised to go deeper on the impact Mike Brown has had in his first year as Head Coach. So here we are.
How can it be that the same roster is thriving under his leadership but struggled to achieve its highest potential under former Head Coach Tom Thibodeau?
If you want to understand why, you need Liz Wiseman’s Multipliers.
What’s playing out between Thibodeau and Brown isn’t a basketball story. It’s a masterclass about how one leader can elevate the people around them while another can shut them down, even without meaning to.
Why it matters
You don’t need to care about basketball to care about getting the best out of your team.
You probably know what it’s like to work for someone who underutilizes and overworks you. The magic of the Multipliers framework is achieving the inverse – getting more out of someone than they think is possible while also leaving them energized by the experience.
A quick primer on Multipliers
Wiseman’s research across 150 leaders found a clean divide. Multipliers amplify the intelligence of the people around them. Diminishers, even well-intentioned ones, drain it. The performance gap: 2x, on average.
Most Diminishers are what Wiseman calls “Accidental Diminishers” – smart, driven leaders whose intensity and control feel like leadership to them but are ultimately detrimental to culture and performance.
Thibodeau fits this profile. His system and standards worked to a certain extent. But he overworked his stars and left the rest of his team’s capability unused.
Brown vs. Thibodeau: Four comparisons through a Multipliers lens
1. The Investor vs. The Micromanager
Thibodeau ran a rigid 8-man rotation; his bench rarely got high-stakes opportunities. Not only did he leave their talent untapped, but he exhausted his top players in the process.
On the other hand, Brown arrived with an explicit mandate to develop the team’s depth. Players like McBride, Shamet, Robinson, and Clarkson got real ownership – and it shows.
In the first three games of the Finals, the Knicks bench continues its dominance, outscoring the Spurs bench 77-59. Same players. More ownership. Better results.
2. The Liberator vs. The Tyrant
Under Thibodeau, the team might have had its best season in 25 years, yet they still raised doubts with the front office about his coaching acumen. That feedback contributed directly to his dismissal.
Brown’s first move was different. Brunson noted he “always wanted open dialogue since Day One.” Brown’s stated culture: selfless, connected, accountable. Compliance gets you effort. Safety gets you hard work.
3. The Challenger vs. The Know-It-All
Thibodeau’s style was built on command: here’s the system, here’s your role, execute. Players knew what was expected. There wasn’t an obvious focus on internal motivation.
By contrast, before Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Brown had his video staff cut together a short film with footage of the Knicks’ own faces after losing to Indiana in the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals: the expressions, the handshakes with Pacers players, Indiana celebrating.
He showed it to the team, then asked them one question: “How did you feel in that moment?” That was it. No speech.
That’s the Challenger in action. Multipliers don’t push motivation from the outside; they create the internal question that players, or employees, have to answer for themselves. The Knicks swept Cleveland in four games.
4. The Debate Maker vs. The Decision Maker
Thibodeau’s system was the answer before the question was even asked — hierarchical, fixed, his call. When it stopped working, the expectation was that players would adapt.
Brown, on the other hand, once said: “I come in with a great plan. Maybe the plan doesn’t work. Who adjusts, KAT or me? Me. I adjust.”
And it doesn’t stop there. Brown’s stated philosophy from day one: “I want the entire organization aligned – from ownership to the front office, coaching staff, players, and medical staff.” Strategy isn’t something Brown brings fully formed into the building. When the plan needs to change, the coach owns that too.
Final thought
Wiseman’s research is significant because it helps answer an existential question many leaders face today: how do we achieve more without having more resources?
If you’re given higher numbers to hit than last year without additional headcount, if you’re asked to stay steady on your goals even though you have open positions on your team, or if you have big goals in mind but don’t have more budget, I hope Mike Brown serves as an example that it’s all possible by simply shifting how you relate to the people around you.
Coaching Corner: First Steps Toward Becoming a Multiplier
Here are three small habit changes to try this week:
Ask “who adjusts?” before stepping in. The next time something isn’t working, pause. Is this a them problem, or something you’ve set up? If Brown can adjust, so can you.
Name someone’s genius. Pick one person and watch for something they do better than almost anyone else. Then call it out specifically: “I notice you always know how to read the room. That’s a real skill.” Multipliers see people clearly. Start there.
Set a challenge. When setting lofty goals sans new resources, frame it as a question, not a directive: What would it take for us to pull this off? Let them own the answer.
Recommendations
I promise that once the Finals is over I’ll go back to writing about other things (though the World Cup is just around the corner and Ted Lasso season 4 is coming out this summer, so actually, no promises…)
In the meantime, here’s an article from HBR called “How Elite Sports Coaches Make High-Pressure Decisions” and another called “6 Ways Leaders Harness Stress”, both from this month’s magazine.
Stay informed and never miss a beat! Subscribe to our newsletter for more coaching tips and weekly insights.
Comments