Tom Thibodeau fully embraced the challenge when he took the head coaching job for the New York Knicks. Having grown up listening to games and attending them with his father, and later serving as an assistant coach under Jeff Van Gundy in the 1990s, his connection to the franchise ran deep.
“I loved being here in the `90s,” Thibodeau recalled in 2021 during his first season leading the team. “There was nothing better than the environment at the Garden… I always knew how lucky I was to be with the Knicks.”
In his initial season, after a promising regular season where he earned Coach of the Year and Julius Randle was in MVP contention, the Knicks were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Atlanta Hawks.
“I love the challenge of it all,” he stated. “When I went to Chicago… everyone said, `Don`t go there.` But I loved it there. When I came here, everyone said the same thing. `The Knicks, it`s a tough job.` But that`s never scared me.”
Thibodeau had built a reputation over decades as an incredibly dedicated worker, a trait that propelled him to head coaching roles in Chicago and Minnesota, but also contributed to his departure from both teams.
Knicks president Leon Rose and executive vice president William Wesley knew Thibodeau`s characteristics well, having connected with him through shared ties at CAA. Owner Jim Dolan brought Rose and Wesley from the agency in 2020, and Thibodeau was an early hire.
“We meet after just about every game,” Thibodeau said of Rose and Wesley in 2021. “They`re going to always be truthful with me, I`m going to be truthful with them. And I feel like I have a voice. That`s all I need is to have a voice.”
Rose, like Thibodeau, was a lifelong Knicks fan. Leaving his prominent role at CAA was only something he`d consider for this franchise. His unique background as a successful agent and a strong relationship with Dolan made him seemingly well-suited for the complexities of the job – not just in talent acquisition, but crucially, in managing the often demanding personalities of Dolan and Thibodeau himself.
For five years, Rose navigated these dynamics, reportedly helping Thibodeau stay focused on the bigger picture rather than getting sidetracked by minor issues. Rose also earned Dolan`s trust through a methodical approach to team-building, making strategic decisions about when to push forward and when to wait.
Dolan commented on this philosophy in March, speaking on Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson`s podcast. He reflected on past mistakes of chasing “shiny objects” – whether players or coaches – hoping for a quick fix, and concluded, “What I learned over time is that doesn`t work… You really have to do the fundamentals, the basics. You`ve got to build a team, you`ve got to build an organization.”
Only Rose and Dolan truly know what transpired between that statement in March and the decision to fire Thibodeau on Tuesday. While Thibodeau led the team to within two wins of their first NBA Finals appearance in a quarter-century and achieved the most successful coaching stretch in decades (two consecutive 50-win seasons for the first time since 1994-95), they had just lost a playoff series to the Indiana Pacers that many within the organization felt they should have won.
Ultimately, Rose, who met with Thibodeau regularly, delivered the kind of candid assessment Thibodeau once valued. “Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans,” Rose stated when announcing the coaching change.
The implication was clear: the organization no longer believed Thibodeau was the coach who could lead them to that ultimate goal.
“This pursuit led us to the difficult decision to inform Tom Thibodeau that we`ve decided to move in another direction. We can`t thank Tom enough for pouring his heart and soul into each and every day of being the New York Knicks head coach. He led us not only with class and professionalism for the past five seasons, but also to tremendous success on the court with four playoff berths and four playoff series victories. Ultimately, we made the decision we feel is best for our organization moving forward,” Rose added.
In the days leading up to the firing, Rose met with several key players and coaching staff members. While framed as exit meetings, these discussions reportedly involved the top rotation players being asked for their perspectives on the team`s direction.
According to sources, the decision to part ways with Thibodeau had been anticipated for months. Concerns lingered that the team wasn`t fully maximizing its talent, even with All-NBA players like Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns. Following the meetings with players and coaches, it became evident to Rose that a new voice was needed.
Sources indicated that players hadn`t stopped listening to Thibodeau, but doubt had set in regarding his ability to lead them to the Finals, particularly after the nature of the Pacers series loss.
“He got outcoached,” a league source familiar with the situation commented. “The Game 1 collapse was insane. If they don`t have that collapse, who knows what happens.”
Thibodeau`s in-game decisions were scrutinized throughout the series, especially by the persistent New York media. This included questions about Karl-Anthony Towns` limited minutes in the fourth quarter of Game 2 when the Knicks struggled to score, and the delayed lineup change in Game 3 (inserting Mitchell Robinson and moving Josh Hart to the bench) after the starters were significantly outplayed in the first two games.
After the Knicks won Game 3 in Indiana with the adjusted starting lineup, Hart confirmed that he had suggested the lineup change to the coaching staff late in the previous series against Boston, advocating for Robinson to play more.
“We`re great with him on the floor. We`ve all got to be willing to sacrifice for the betterment of the team,” Hart stated.
While Thibodeau did make some adjustments that helped the Knicks extend the series to six games, they were perceived as being too late to change the overall outcome or quell the public questions about his coaching.
This wasn`t the first public critique from one of his players that season. Earlier in the year, Mikal Bridges, known for his durability, openly expressed concerns about the heavy minutes played by the starters, suggesting bench players should be utilized more.
“We`ve got a lot of good guys on this team that can take away the minutes, which helps the defense, helps the offense, helps tired bodies being out there and giving up all these points,” Bridges told reporters in March. “It helps us keeping fresh bodies out there.”
Bridges mentioned discussing this with Thibodeau, implying the coach understood but sometimes got “locked in” on keeping starters on the floor. “Sometimes you have to tell him like, Landry [Shamet], for example, or somebody, keep them out there, they`re playing well,” Bridges added.
This tendency to overplay starters is a criticism that has followed Thibodeau throughout his career and one he has seemingly never fully addressed. That two prominent players publicly voiced such concerns was reportedly alarming to the organization.
Further concerns related to Thibodeau`s heavy reliance on Jalen Brunson. Initially, the Brunson-Towns pick-and-roll was highly effective, but its efficiency dropped significantly after February as opponents adjusted their defense. Thibodeau reportedly struggled to find effective counters, often leaving Brunson to create scoring opportunities late in possessions.
Brunson`s high usage rate under Thibodeau, the highest of his career, raised red flags for some. A league source drew parallels to Derrick Rose`s injury history in Chicago under Thibodeau, suggesting that Brunson, who dealt with injuries himself, might struggle with long-term durability without a more balanced offensive system.
Ultimately, the loss to the Pacers sealed Thibodeau`s fate. The Pacers, despite having less top-tier talent, possessed greater depth and shooting, factors vividly demonstrated in their dramatic fourth-quarter comeback in Game 1. That defeat, occurring after the Knicks had built considerable hope and momentum from their playoff run, was a significant blow.
The team had invested heavily, trading multiple first-round picks to acquire players like Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns, aiming to make a deep playoff push. Thibodeau`s role was to integrate and maximize these talents, but the team fell short of reaching the Finals, a disappointment made more acute given the injuries to key players on potential Eastern Conference rivals.
The Knicks now face the challenge of finding a new coach they believe is an upgrade and addressing the roster`s weaknesses that were exposed in the playoffs. The Knicks coaching position is seen as both highly desirable and notoriously difficult. Thibodeau, who experienced its pressures firsthand as both an assistant and head coach, is the latest to attempt and fail to deliver the championship the franchise has sought since 1973.
He understood the unique environment and the intensity of the city`s passion for the team. “Those games in the Garden, there`s nothing better,” Thibodeau said in his first season back. “It`s the best. What the Knicks mean to New York City is so special… Sometimes I`ll look back and say, `Wow, how lucky have you been?`”
