Fire Tom Thibodeau? Now why would the Knicks do that?
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau yells from the sideline during the first half of Game 6 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday in Indianapolis. Credit: AP/Michael Conroy
The list is long, painfully long. It includes Hall of Fame coaches Lenny Wilkens and Larry Brown. It includes former players with championship rings such as Isiah Thomas and Derek Fisher, and former Knicks players Mike Woodson and Herb Williams.
The one thing the list of Knicks coaches since December 2001 doesn’t include? A coach with a better playoff record than Tom Thibodeau.
In fact, of the 14 coaches who have led the Knicks since Jeff Van Gundy quit — that’s right, the Knicks have had 14 coaches in 23 years — only Woodson and Thibodeau, the current Knicks coach, have won more games in the regular season than they lost.
So think about this the next time someone suggests that firing Thibodeau is the answer to the Knicks’ problems. As disappointed as you are about the Knicks’ season-ending loss to the Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, think about how much fun it was to watch the Knicks during the David Fizdale era (21-83) or the Fisher era (40-96) or the Don Chaney era (72-112).
Thibodeau’s job security is a favorite topic among Knicks fans and probably will continue to be throughout this summer. There was so much online chatter about it during the ugly second half of the Game 6 loss, with many fans pushing the theory that the Knicks need a new face at the helm in order to get to the next level. The topic was so prevalent that Jalen Brunson was asked to weigh in on it during his postgame news conference.
“Is that a real question right now?” he said. “You just asked me if I believe he’s the right guy? Yes.”
Thibodeau, who is under contract through 2028, deserves a chance to keep going with this team. He deserves it because the Knicks have shown steady progress under his tutelage and actually overachieved in making it to the conference finals.
Thibodeau was hired in 2020, taking over a team that went 21-45 the year before under Fizdale and interim coach Mike Miller. Thibodeau immediately led the Knicks to the playoffs, their first trip in eight years, and was named Coach of the Year in 2021. In his five seasons, he’s taken the Knicks to the postseason four times, won at least one playoff series in three consecutive seasons and this year helped them earn their first conference finals appearance since 2000.
Did anyone except the most hardcore Knicks fan think this team would beat the Celtics in six games? Thibodeau played a big role in that series, modifying his defensive scheme to confuse and stun Boston right out of the gate. The Knicks, who opened the series with two wins in Boston, were well on their way to beating the defending champions before Jayson Tatum got injured in Game 4. In addition to outcoaching Joe Mazzulla, Thibodeau was able to instill a never-give-up mentality in his team. The Knicks became the first team to twice overcome a 20-point deficit in a single series.
The Knicks were built to beat the Celtics, and perhaps having accomplished that, they overlooked the Pacers. If so, that is partially on Thibodeau. He was outdone by Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, who came up with the big adjustment in the closeout game by putting Andrew Nembhard on Brunson. Nembhard hounded Brunson the entire game, and the Knicks’ point guard committed five turnovers.
At the same time, Thibodeau showed some growth in the series, going deeper into the bench than he usually is comfortable with and reconfiguring his starting lineup so Mitchell Robinson was playing along the defensively challenged Karl-Anthony Towns.
Oh, about Thibodeau and that bench. Yes, it drives Knicks fans crazy that he plays his starters so many minutes, though a solid argument can be made that the Knicks don’t really have much of a bench and Thibodeau had to stick with his best players.
The best way for the Knicks to move forward is to tweak the roster, not switch the coach. Right now, the franchise is in the best place it has been in a generation. Thibodeau has a lot to do with that, which is something even the Pacers could see.
“The Knicks were an unreal opponent,” Carlisle said. “Tough-minded, always coming at you. After the game, they showed great class with all the interactions I had with those guys. I mentioned the job that Thibs has done there. He’s turned the culture completely flipped from where it was.”
Where it was for a good two decades. Not something I want to think about.
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
