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Reading: “What The Hell Is Up With Thibs Man?”: Charles Barkley To Jalen Brunson After Knicks Steal Game 3 Against Pacers
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Home > NBA News & Media > “What The Hell Is Up With Thibs Man?”: Charles Barkley To Jalen Brunson After Knicks Steal Game 3 Against Pacers

“What The Hell Is Up With Thibs Man?”: Charles Barkley To Jalen Brunson After Knicks Steal Game 3 Against Pacers

Charles Barkley seems genuinely baffled at what Tom Thibodeau is doing with the Knicks.

Chaitanya Dadhwal
May 26, 2025
4 Min Read
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Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Tom Thibodeau is famous for overexerting his players and using unique coaching strategies like starting and closing line-ups to get the job done. Before the Knicks stole Game 3 in Indiana, during the game itself, fans were criticizing Tom Thibodeau’s coaching strategies. 

After the Knicks somehow pulled off the win vs. the Pacers, even Charles Barkley was visibly left baffled at how Thibodeau managed to will his team to victory while using those strategies. Barkley went on ‘Inside the NBA’ after Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals and spoke to Jalen Brunson.

He said, “Jalen, what the hell is up with Thibs, man? Y’all bench technically won this game for y’all. Does he ever explain to you guys? I’m gonna play, guys, I’m not gonna play, guys. You’ve got to admit it’s kind of wacky!”

"I had a great comeback but let me stop." 🤣

Brunson was about to clap back at Chuck 😭 pic.twitter.com/GlHgJAIuHG

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 26, 2025

Brunson responded, “I had a great comeback, but let me stop. I got the utmost faith and confidence, man. Regardless of what people say on the outside, respectfully, whatever you guys said, we’re a close-knit group in the locker room.”

For context, Thibodeau used some eccentric combinations of players on the floor that you would usually not expect to see together on the floor at the same time. From starting Mitchell Robinson instead of Josh Hart to playing Delon Wright and Landry Shamet at the same time (both of whom didn’t play a single minute in Game 2), an opposing coach simply cannot predict what to expect from coach Thibodeau. He even benched Brunson for most of the final quarter in this game. The player he usually relies on the most. He played a combined three minutes in the fourth quarter.


 What Does This Win Mean For The Knicks?

This 106-100 win for the Knicks is the third 20-point comeback they have pulled off in this season’s Playoffs. This season, there were six times when a team came back from down 20 points in the Playoffs. The last two times they did that were against the Celtics in Game 1 and Game 2 of their second-round series. 

There's been SIX 20-point comeback wins this playoffs, the most in a single postseason in the play-by-play era (since 1997).

OKC: down 29 in G3 at MEM
IND: down 20 in G5 vs MIL
NYK: down 20 in G1 at BOS
IND: down 20 in G2 at CLE
NYK: down 20 in G2 at BOS
NYK: down 20 tonight

— Keerthika Uthayakumar (@keerthikau) May 26, 2025

The Knicks have now revived their hopes to make their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999. Karl-Anthony Towns, after struggling with only 4 points in the first three quarters of Game 3, led the Knicks’ comeback rally in the game with 20 points in the final quarter.

For further context, Thibodeau benched Karl-Anthony Towns for the fourth quarter in Game 2 despite his 20 points in the first three quarters. It is this erratic style of coaching and rotating players that brings Thibodeau under the microscope. Will this also help the Knicks win in Game 4? Or will the Pacers find a counter like they did in Games 1 and 2? Let us know what you think in the comments section.

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TAGGED:Charles BarkleyJalen BrunsonNew York Knicks ArchiveTom Thibodeau
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ByChaitanya Dadhwal
Chaitanya Dadhwal is an NBA Analyst and Columnist at Fadeaway World from New Delhi, India. He fell in love with basketball in 2018 after seeing James Harden in his prime. He joined the sports journalism world in 2021, one year before finishing his law school in 2022. He attended Jindal Global Law School in Sonipat, India, where his favorite subject was also Sports Law.He transitioned from law to journalism after realizing his true passion for sports and basketball in particular. Even though his journalism is driven by his desire to understand both sides of an argument and give a neutral perspective, he openly admits he is biased towards the Houston Rockets and Arsenal. But that intersection of in-depth analysis and passion helps him simplify the fine print and complex language for his readers.His goal in life is to open his own sports management agency one day and represent athletes. He wants to ensure he can help bridge the gap in equal opportunity for athletes across various sports and different genders playing the same sport.
Previous Article Knicks Pull Off Third 20-Point Comeback In Single Playoff Run To Beat Pacers In Game 3; Most In 27 Years
Next Article “They Come In And Wreak Havoc”: Tyrese Haliburton Admits Knicks’ Bench Stopped Pacers In The Second Half
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