The Knicks moved on from head coach Tom Thibodeau because of his rigidness. He refused to experiment with lineup combinations or defensive schemes, and his stubbornness made it hard for young or unproven players to develop. Ultimately, it became clear that his style of coaching was hard-capping the Knicks as a whole, and they dismissed him. There may be no better example of why that was the correct decision by the Knicks than the play of Obi Toppin in the finals.
Since being traded to the Indiana Pacers for a couple of second-round picks, Toppin has blossomed into one of the most impactful role players in the NBA. He has developed into a solid 3-point shooter, is a monster in transition who runs the floor as well as anyone, and is still one of the best in-game dunkers in the sport.
He has also improved on the defensive end and cleaned up some of the rebounding problems that plagued him earlier in his career. All of this was achieved beause he had a coach who put him in a position to succeed.
Thibodeau failed Toppin
For all of Thibodeau's traits that make him an exceptional coach, and he is an exceptional coach, he undeniably struggles to stray from what he believes to be right, often to a fault. Because of this, players are often miscast, or forced into an archetype that they either don't fit or don't maximize their talents and potential.
Toppin is a prime example of this. When he was on the court, most of his time was spent standing in the corner or warming the bench because his rim protection skills didn't align with his height. A natural counter to this argument would be that Toppin was playing behind Julius Randle, an All-NBA forward. How could Toppin have possibly ever developed into the player he is now, stuck behind that?
Well, Toppin is currently stuck behind Pascal Siakam, another All-NBA level forward. Yet, somehow, Rick Carlisle has found a way to be able to maximize both of them, something Thibodeau was never able to do, or perhaps unwilling to try to do.
The Knicks need their young talent
With the way the Knicks roster is constructed and their financial constraints, they will likely need one or multiple of their young players to step into a contributing role in the 2025-26 season. Whether it is Pacome Dadiet, Tyler Kolek, or Ariel Hukporti, there are minutes that need to be taken.
It is unlikely that Thibodeau would have given those minutes to any of them. Instead, more minutes for Josh Hart! In all seriousness, though, the next Knicks coach will need to do a better job of identifying and maximizing the talents of the players on the roster.