3 head coaches who could replace Tom Thibodeau if Knicks fire him

2: Kenny Atkinson

This is a little more difficult than Yoshimoto, as Kenny Atkinson was previously offered to be the head coach of the Charlotte Hornets, but he backed out last second to return to the Golden State Warriors’ staff.

This was likely due to the somewhat poor situation with the Hornets, as not only was the team going through the Miles Bridges situation, but the team as a whole is rather questionable in terms of talent outside of LaMelo Ball.

Regardless, if the Warriors have another successful run this season, Atkinson could look to go back into the head coach free agency pool and look to secure another job.

If this becomes the case, the Knicks’ front office should do their due diligence to try and hire the former head coach.

Atkinson was last a head coach for the Brooklyn Nets, while his coaching record may not be the most impressive (118-190), this should not take away from the fact that he is a pretty good coach. He just inherited a very unfortunate situation with the Nets, as he was the coach prior to KD and Kyrie Irving joining the team.

Before hiring Thibodeau, many Knicks fans wanted Atkinson to be the front office’s number one choice, myself included. At the time, the other head coaching options were not that tantalizing.

It may be a long shot, however, if New York can pry Atkinson away, the team could see some legitimate success with him at the helm.