The New York Knicks fired Tom Thibodeau as head coach following their exit in the Eastern Conference Finals at the hands of the Indiana Pacers. Thibodeau had led the Knicks to their best season in over two decades, but according to Vincent Goodwill, owner James Dolan still wasn’t his biggest fan and spearheaded the dismissal.
“What was clear was Thibodeau’s firing being spearheaded by Knicks owner James Dolan, sources told Yahoo Sports. Dolan and team president Leon Rose held exit meetings with key Knicks players and the complaints were clear.
“Dolan, whom sources said was never a huge Thibodeau fan through the years, asked the questions in the meeting while Rose took a secondary role.
“A couple of players felt like Thibodeau played the starters too many minutes and felt he had an inability to adjust, sources said, and another player said he didn’t feel like he could play for Thibodeau if the coach returned next season.”
The unhappiness of a couple of these players provided Dolan with the justification to fire the best head coach the Knicks have had in quite some time. This was a team that had missed the playoffs seven seasons in a row when Thibodeau arrived in 2020.
Thibodeau compiled a 226-174 record in his five seasons with the Knicks and made the playoffs four times. They got past the first round on three occasions and made the Conference Finals for the first time since 2000 this year.
Unfortunately for Thibodeau, some of the biggest knocks against him were once again big talking points this season. He was criticized for playing the starters too much, not trusting his bench, and not making timely adjustments. The players brought up those same issues, and that sealed his fate.
While the Knicks might be right to believe that Thibodeau couldn’t lead them to a title, they need to make sure the person who replaces him proves to be a success. Or else, they will be put on blast for firing him.
Dallas Mavericks’ Jason Kidd and Houston Rockets’ Ime Udoka were reported as two names the Knicks were interested in. Udoka, in particular, would be a terrific replacement, but it appears they won’t get either of them.
Rockets insider Kelly Iko stated the team has no interest in even entertaining this subject. As for Kidd, NBA insider Marc Stein reported that the Mavericks won’t give the Knicks permission to speak with their head coach.
The Knicks were also linked to former Villanova head coach Jay Wright. Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges all played under Wright, and you wondered if he would come out of retirement to coach this team. The answer, however, is no. Wright told Seth Davis that he had informed the Knicks that he is not interested in the job.
It doesn’t look like the Knicks will be getting any of their top choices. Their former associate head coach, Johnnie Bryant, has been touted as a candidate as well, and he is still available after the Phoenix Suns chose Jordan Ott over him. It will be interesting to see who the Knicks end up with and if that individual takes them further than Thibodeau did.
