Knicks shed stability of Thibodeau era by seeking a new coach

NEW YORK — Tom Thibodeau's firing brought back some of the confusion and chaos the New York Knicks had seemingly left behind.

After an era of stability and more success than they had enjoyed in a quarter of a century, the Knicks opened a coaching search few could have predicted when they fired Thibodeau on Tuesday.

"When I first saw it, I thought it was one of those fake AI things. No way. There's no way possible," Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said.

Coaching searches weren't unusual in New York for much of the 2000s, but the Knicks weren't winning then. This time, they had just reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years before losing to Carlisle's team, and were an early favorite to do it again next year. So changing course brought swift and strong reaction from a fan base that seemed satisfied.

Who decided Thibodeau had to go? And why?

"That seemed like an unfortunate call that the boss made, certainly for him," tennis Hall of Famer John McEnroe, a Knicks fan, said while calling the French Open quarterfinals for TNT.

But which boss?

Direct answers may not come. Knicks leadership, from owner James Dolan to team president Leon Rose, doesn't do interviews with the reporters who cover the team. So the only hint may have come in the team's statement announcing the firing, in which Rose said the organization was "singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans."

That means the view was that Thibodeau was good enough to get the Knicks close but not all the way.

Rose was friends with Thibodeau long before hiring him in 2020 and giving him a three-year contract extension last summer. So immediate speculation was that Dolan, who at times has been viewed as meddlesome and unpopular with his team's fans, must have ordered the ouster. But a person with knowledge of the decision, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details were to remain private, said Rose made the call with Dolan's approval.

Rose conducted a thorough search five years ago, even though Thibodeau had been viewed as a favorite because of his relationship both to Rose and the organization as an assistant to Jeff Van Gundy in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Van Gundy has returned to coaching as an assistant with the Clippers, if the Knicks wanted to gauge interest in a reunion. Michael Malone, who led Denver to the 2023 NBA title, is another former Knicks assistant who is available, as is Johnnie Bryant, who was beaten out Wednesday by Jordan Ott for Phoenix's head coaching position.

Rick Pitino, Dan Hurley and John Calipari are all big names with ties to the New York area if Rose wanted to go the college route, and the retired Jay Wright coached current Knicks players Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges on national championship teams at Villanova. Brunson's father, Rick, was an assistant on Thibodeau's staff, if Rose wanted to promote the team captain's father.

Pitino, at Yankee Stadium to throw out the first pitch Wednesday, said "only time tells with those" if the Knicks made a mistake firing Thibodeau.

"I feel bad for Thibs because I think he captured all of New York, built something very, very special," said Pitino, who also coached the Knicks. "A lot of us don't comprehend what happened but Thibs is going to be well taken care of and he'll move on to other pastures."

The Knicks had 12 coaches between the time Van Gundy resigned early in the 2001-02 season and Thibodeau's hiring, and they won just one playoff series. Thibodeau won four in the last three seasons.

McEnroe thought that earned Thibodeau another year, a common reaction to his firing. The Knicks decided otherwise, sending Rose into a search with much higher consequences than last time.

Back then, on the heels of seven straight losing seasons, he just needed a coach who could win some games. Now he needs one who can deliver a championship.

"I mean, I'm not really in that situation, but the thing I can say is Thibs did a lot for New York," said Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein, who played in New York last season. "He did a lot just building that culture over there. So I think I have a lot of respect for him."

Agencies via Xinhua