Leon Rose hasn’t publicly spoken since before the New York Knicks‘ 2021-22 season. That was back when fans still had hope for what was to come after an exciting fourth-place finish in the East and a playoff berth to conclude 2020-21.
Fast forward to Sunday, Apr. 10. New York’s team president spoke with MSG Network’s Mike Breen, who’s the lead play-by-play announcer for the Knicks on the telecast.
Understandably, there’s a lot that the team’s beat reporters want to ask Rose, but he went an entire season without making himself available to them. Per Ian Begley, it’s not a given that a press conference will be scheduled, either. Presumably, his interview with Breen took its place.
Nonetheless, Rose’s comments about Julius Randle and Tom Thibodeau were telling. Those two topics are likely what reporters wanted to hear from him about and given what he said, those same reporters are likely even more eager for a press conference.
Leon Rose spoke to MSG Network about Julius Randle (“was just not comfortable at times”), Tom Thibodeau & more. Details below. (An aside: it seems Rose will only be available to MSG Network for season-ending remarks & will eschew speaking to local media): https://t.co/9N79HZnrP9
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) April 11, 2022
Leon Rose comments on New York Knicks’ coach Tom Thibodeau and Julius Randle.
If Knicks fans were hoping to hear Rose talk down on Randle and Thibodeau, that isn’t what happened. In fact, the opposite occurred. On the hot topic of New York’s head coach, Rose said:
"“As far as Thibs performance goes, I mean, again, he’s one of the best coaches in the NBA. So obviously none of us are happy with the results this year. But he’s a guy who prepares our team better than anybody. I feel that he’s done a good job under the circumstances.”"
It appears that what Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer reported nearly a month ago is true – Thibodeau’s expected to be back next season. He won Coach of the Year in 2020-21 for a reason, and while it’d be harsh to cut ties with him after two seasons, it seems that he isn’t the right fit for the direction that the Knicks want to go in.
As Rose said, New York has nine players on the roster who are 24 or younger. The future of the team is bright, but fans are worried about Thibodeau darkening that light.
Sure, he’s been around to help develop players like Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley, but what they both did to close out the year raises questions about why they didn’t play more.
The assumption is that if Randle is traded this summer, his departure will make room for Toppin in the starting lineup. However, based on what Rose said, the former All-Star isn’t going anywhere.
"“Julius is a passionate player. He’s a person who – last year everything went right. This year things didn’t go right. He still wound up one of (three) players to average 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic are the others).”"
Rose went on to say, “Julius loves it here in New York, wants to be in New York.” That’s what Randle said to reporters after he was asked about the rumor that he had requested a trade. We can all argue that his actions haven’t matched his word, but with Rose being the president, he’s in the know.
With the offseason ahead of them, the Knicks appear to be on the right track. To many, Randle and Thibodeau may throw that off, but for now, they appear to be here to stay.
Rose is a professional, though, and he isn’t going to go in-depth about what could happen in the near future with those two (if anything). If those discussions have/will take place, they’ll stay behind closed doors. Regardless, let us not forget that where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
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