Speaking publicly for the first time since Brown was axed for assaulting teammate Steven May in Los Angeles, McKenna said the veteran recruit's three years at the club had been overwhelmingly positive.
"Everything he did for us as a football club in its infancy was exactly what we've asked for," McKenna said.
"Clearly on-field suspensions hurt you, and the incident (with May) was disappointing, but what he's done is shown some players about that 50-50 ball - you've got to make that a 51-49 ball, and he did that.
"He crossed the line and got suspended ... but he showed the boys the way to be passionate about that contest.
"As coaches we can tell them, but (when) you've got a player living and breathing that, it's a great example for the team."
Gold Coast has lodged a request with the AFL to have a rookie elevated as Brown's replacement on the senior list, but are still waiting on the outcome.
Brown brought a rugged on-field presence the Suns will now miss, but McKenna is confident his young players can fill the void.
He nominated forwards Charlie Dixon and Tom Lynch, along with midfield tyros David Swallow and Jaeger O'Meara as the men to assert their physical presence in 2014.
"The incident was disappointing, it was dealt with, decision made and within 24 hours we're talking about how good everyone's looking, how good everyone's training," McKenna said.
"Everyone externally is talking about the chances of us playing finals and we want to embrace that. We're setting no ceilings on ourselves and we shouldn't based on the pre-season we've had so far."
The Suns went through an arduous session in the Gold Coast humidity on Wednesday morning, with players completing four 1km reps before hitting the Metricon Stadium surface for an extended ball-work session.
Twitter: @AFL_mikewhiting
