1 day ago
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Chris Herring
Jun 3, 2025, 02:45 PM ET
Fresh off their deepest playoff run in 25 years, the New York Knicks fired coach Tom Thibodeau on Tuesday
The decision comes two days after the Knicks were ousted from the Eastern Conference semifinals in six games by the Indiana Pacers, their longtime rivals. But it also comes after New York advanced further than expected with a relatively new core of players, knocking out the defending champion Boston Celtics in the second round.
Thibodeau, who ranks fourth all-time on the franchise list in victories and surpassed Pat Riley earlier this season, led the Knicks to back-to-back 50-win seasons since the first time 1995. He'd been the club's most successful coach by far over the past two plus decades and signed a three-year extension with the team just last summer.
"Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans," team president Leon Rose said in a statement. "This pursuit led us to the 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.
"... Ultimately, we made the decision we feel is best for our organization moving forward. Tom will always be part of our Knicks family and we truly wish him nothing but the best in the future."
Thibodeau had a lengthy history with the Knicks, dating back to that 1990s era, when he was an assistant coach under Jeff Van Gundy. Rick Brunson, one of Thibodeau's assistant coaches, played for those Knick teams and often brought his son, Jalen -- now the franchise's superstar -- to practices and games.
Following the club's season-ending defeat in Indiana, Jalen Brunson was asked about Thibodeau's job status.
"Is that a real question right now? You just asked me if I believe he's the right guy? Yes. Come on."
The Knicks upset the Celtics despite being losing all four of their games to the club during the regular season -- with three of those losses coming by double digits -- and despite fielding an overhauled group.
The team's front office sent out five first-round picks for Brooklyn wing Mikal Bridges before dealing Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to Minnesota for All-NBA center Karl-Anthony Towns. The swaps left the Knicks with a bit less depth, but one of the most talented starting fives in the association.
As such, Thibodeau -- long known for playing his starters big minutes, even as the league moves toward utilizing rest in this load-management era -- leaned heavily on his starting five, playing them far more than any other five-man group in the NBA.
New York was the veteran coach's third head-coaching stop in the NBA, including time with the Chicago Bulls (2010-2015) and the Minnesota Timberwolves (2016-2019).
He has a .579 career win percentage as a head coach, the highest by any coach without a Finals appearance in NBA history (minimum 300 games coached), according to ESPN Research.
