How a famous basketball coach went from being denied a high school job to coaching NBA superstars

Chris Brickley was just like everyone else when he was a kid – he wanted to make it big in the sports world. He did just that, but it didn’t quite work out the way he imagined.

The 38-year-old basketball coach started at the University of Louisville in January 2008 with the goal of turning pro. But when he realized he wasn’t going to be a long-term player, Brickley started coaching, becoming an assistant at Ole Miss (“it was tough,” said the Manchester, New Hampshire native) and then an assistant at Fairleigh Dickinson.

After that, Brickley said, he didn’t even get a job as a high school coach in New Jersey, but then “out of the blue” he landed an internship with the New York Knicks.

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Chris Brickley says LeBron James has been training with him for at least five years. (Chris Brickley)

However, while working at MSG, he got the promotion of a lifetime – after ignoring the locker room he worked in.

Brickley said Carmelo Anthony missed a game-winning shot during the preseason and was told not to talk to him after the game.

But he swam against the tide, which, he said, “changed his life.”

“I’ve played basketball and I know what it’s like to miss a shot. So I just told him how I felt,” Brickley said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital. “The next day he came into the office and said, ‘I want him to be my coach.'”

“It happened so fast,” Brickley says, “but I guess that’s the power of a franchise player.”

Brickley says he owes Anthony “everything” – “without him … I don’t know what would have happened next.” He also owes a lot to Phil Jackson. When he came on board, he was the only one who wasn’t fired, according to Brickley. Jackson then appointed him the team’s director of player personnel.

Today, nearly a decade later, Brickley has over 3 million followers on Instagram and has made friends with some of the game’s best.

LeBron James and Kevin Durant are just a few of the All-Stars who have worked out at his gym in Manhattan’s Summit apartment building during the offseason. The building was also the site of a viral celebrity game a few years ago that featured Justin Bieber, Drake and Quavo – so it’s not just NBA stars who come to Midtown to visit Brickley.

Kevin Durant trains at Chris Brickley’s gym. (Chris Brickley)

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Brickley is a partner of BODY ARMOR and says that he shares similar values ​​with the beverage company and has therefore been able to maintain relationships with some of the greatest basketball players of all time.

“Everything about it is real. Real ingredients, real flavor, and that goes back to my brand. I’m just me, I’m authentic, I’m real. My brand fits with BODY ARMOR,” Brickley said. “Since I’ve been in the training business, my goal has always been to be at the top, and I think BODY ARMOR’s goal is to be at the top. Our two brands fit together. They fit together when I first signed with them, and they still fit together.”

Over the weekend, his hometown celebrated “Chris Brickley Day,” which included building new squares and giving away lots of giveaways, including Puma sneakers and headphones.

This is not exactly how Brickley imagined his basketball future, but it is a nice consolation prize.

“The goal was to be LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird or anyone else. I didn’t achieve that, but not in my wildest dreams did I think that would become a reality in my life,” he says. “But you have to keep working hard day after day and hope for the best.”

Brickley says he sits back and reflects on his journey “more often than you think.” But the hard work isn’t over yet.

LeBron James visits Chris Brickley’s gym. (Chris Brickley)

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His social media presence is huge, but Brickley plans to one day return to where it all began.

“I’m super hungry and motivated. At some point I’m going to be 100% back to coaching, maybe even managing to put together an NBA team. I think that would be super cool…” Brickley says.

“Every summer I get job offers, but right now there is nothing better than having these amazing partners like BODY ARMOR and being in control of my day, my story and who I work with. It’s the best feeling in the world.”

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