Tom Thibodeau has been heavily scrutinized by both fans and the media over his lineup rotations during his tenure as head coach of the New York Knicks.
Among the many criticisms is that he relies too heavily on his starters. During the regular season, the starting lineup of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Karl-Anthony Towns logged 940 minutes together, 226 more than the lineup with the next most minutes played.
Other critiques were that Thibs often plays lineups featuring multiple non-shooters, such as Hart and Mitchell Robinson, who have shared the court for 23 minutes so far in the playoffs.
In Game 3, to the surprise of many, Thibs switched up his rotations in a big way. Although, it wasn't a switch anyone saw coming, or asked for, for that matter.
Thibs got a bit too creative
With just under one minute to go in the first quarter of Game 3, Towns replaced Hart, joining Robinson, Anunoby, Deuce McBride, and Cam Payne on the court. In doing so, the Knicks had five players sharing the floor for just the first time all season.
Yes, you read that right. Thibs waited until the most important game of the year to try a lineup for the first time. While trying something new isn't necessarily a problem, the timing of it is interesting to say the least.
Thibs' newfound love of experimenting didn't end there, however. To start the second quarter, Thibs went with a lineup of Payne, Landry Shamet, McBride, Robinson, and Towns. That group of players had only played six minutes together all season.
After 50 seconds of play in which the Knicks did not score, Bridges checked back into the game for McBride, creating a lineup of Bridges, Shamet, Payne, Robinson, and Towns. That lineup played a total of just five minutes together in the regular season.
That lineup responded by giving up a three to Dennis Schroder on their first defensive possession, before getting a 24-second violation on their first offensive possession.
This lineup of Mikal Bridges, Landry Shamet, Cameron Payne, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Mitchell Robinson played a total of five minutes together in the regular season. In their first offensive possession in the playoffs as a group they don't get a shot off
— AOP_NBA (@aop_nba) April 24, 2025
Stick to these adjustments
In Game 4, Thibs should channel the creative lineup energy that has clearly been building up in him to make a few smaller tweaks.
For starters, perhaps swapping McBride for Hart and giving him some run with the other starters. For those who have been clamoring for a five-out offense, this part is for you. Thibs only played this lineup for 41 minutes in the regular season. However, in the limited sample size, they posted an offensive rating of 127, which would be the best offensive rating in the league.
Yes, yes, I know. It is 41 minutes. There are many lineups with that small of a sample size that could be cherry-picked and say, "Look, the best lineup in the league!", but let me dream in peace.