The New York Knicks, recent runners-up in the Eastern Conference playoffs of the NBA after losing 2-4 in that series against the Indiana Pacers, announced the dismissal of their head coach Tom Thibodeau, taking “a different direction” in a franchise that claims to be “solely focused on winning” titles.
The decision was met with disbelief and surprise in the NBA world, as the Knicks had their best season in 25 years and, in addition, “Thibs” still had two years left on his contract with a total of $20 million guaranteed that the New York team still has to pay him.
Why did the Knicks fire Thibodeau?
The experienced coach arrived five years ago to take charge of the Knicks and always displayed better performance than the previous season. In 2021, Thibodeau was chosen as the NBA Coach of the Year.
Despite that, the Knickerbockers decided to fire their coach.
“Our organization is solely focused on winning a championship for our fans. This goal led us to the difficult decision to inform Tom Thibodeau that we have decided to go in another direction,” stated Knicks president Leon Rose.
“We are extremely grateful to Tom for his unwavering dedication every day as the head coach of the Knicks. He led us not only with class and professionalism over the last five seasons, but also to resounding success on the court, with four playoff appearances and four playoff series victories,” summarized the press release issued by the Madison Square Garden Sports conglomerate, owner of the Knicks.
One of the main criticisms of Thibodeau is that he gave too many minutes to the starters and few minutes to the reserves, creating an excessive burden that could have cost him in the series against the Pacers.
Now, the options for the Knicks coaching staff are: Dave Bliss (assistant at the Thunder), James Borrego (assistant at the Pelicans), and Mike Brown (former coach of the Kings).