Tom Thibodeau losing his job after leading the New York Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2000 is supposed to signal just how championship-or-bust the organization is treating its current window. Heck, team president Leon Rose said as much in the press release announcing the decision.
As it turns out, though, Thibs’ fate may have been decided by the players.
During a recent SiriusXM NBA Radio appearance, SNY’s Ian Begley spoke about the importance of new head coach Mike Brown building trust with the roster. While doing so, he hinted that Thibs’ approval rating in the locker room may not have been terribly high.
“If you catch [the veterans] at an honest moment, some of them were ready for a fresh voice, and I think that’s where Mike Brown has an advantage coming in,” he explained. “These guys, they loved Tom Thibodeau. But none of them also stepped up and said ‘Hey, Tom Thibodeau has to be the coach here, or I’m leaving.’ If that happened, maybe Tom Thibodeau is still here.”
We already knew Thibs wasn’t vibing with OG Anunoby, or Mikal Bridges. But Begley’s comments suggest there were issues elsewhere.
The absence of an impassioned Thibs defenses seems notable
Sure, the affinity Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart have for Thibs is a matter of fact. Nobody, though, definitively campaigned for Thibs to stay following New York’s playoff exit. Hart went after his former coach’s critics most aggressively once he was already canned.
The absence of a #SaveThibs movement isn’t necessarily evidence of an irreparable disconnect between him and the entire roster. And while an ESPN report claimed the Knicks fired Thibs in part because of how much he relied on Brunson, it did not imply the captain himself felt the same.
Still, it’s fair to wonder whether Brunson, specifically, could have stopped Thibs’ firing. He is the lifeblood of the entire organization—the player currently most responsible for the Knicks’ status as title contenders. He is also fresh off signing an extension last offseason that’s so team-friendly people are calling for the Pablo Torre Finds Out podcast to investigate it.
If that player had walked into Rose’s office and said “If Thibs goes, I go,” surely the franchise would have listened…right?
There’s a chance the players could never have saved Thibodeau’s job
This isn’t an attempt to put Thibs’ dismissal on Brunson’s shoulders. So many factors were at play. And Thibs himself is far from blameless.
We also can’t be sure that the players or even Leon Rose wielded enough power in this situation. A June report from Vincent Goodwill, then of Yahoo Sports, alleges that owner James Dolan played a critical role in the decision. Nobody is going to overrule him.
This could even be a case of Thibs’ supporters deferring to the majority. Maybe Brunson was prepared to fight for his coach’s job, only to find out that Bridges, Anunoby, and others supported the change in voice. At that point, as the consummate team leader, it’s his responsibility to take the wider roster’s feelings into account.
These latest comments from Begley are nevertheless fascinating. We will never know for sure if Brunson or anybody else could have saved Thibs’ job. But it also doesn’t sound like anybody truly tried.