The New York Knicks seemingly fired head coach Tom Thibodeau without having a plan.
In the past 48 hours, the Knicks have submitted requests to NBA teams with active head coaches.
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Houston Rockets were the first two teams to reject the Knicks’ attempts to speak with their head coaches, Chris Finch and Ime Udoka. Then, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the Knicks were not done trying, receiving a “firm rejection” from the Dallas Mavericks in their effort to speak with Jason Kidd.
Three strikes you’re out? Not for the Knicks. They also received a rejection from the Atlanta Hawks regarding their head coach, Quin Snyder.
It seems outright delusional that the Knicks believe they have a chance at hiring away an active NBA coach under contract — especially because they keep swinging and missing. At what point do the Knicks realize they are being the creepy guy at the bar that keeps getting rejected?
Oh yeah, Villanova’s Jay Wright isn’t interested, either.
Knicks fans online are already scrambling to defend their team, claiming they’ve never seen an NBA head coaching search under a microscope like this. Sure, that’s true. But the elephant in the room here is that coaching searches rarely begin by calling other NBA organizations to see if they want to get rid of their active head coach without firing him.
At least New York has a little bit of pride, though. According to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, the Knicks did not approach the “elite” tier of NBA coaches, including Golden State’s Steve Kerr, Los Angeles’ Ty Lue, Lakers head coach JJ Redick, Milwaukee’s Doc Rivers — and wait for it — Indiana’s Rick Carlisle, who is currently coaching in the NBA Finals.
Incredible restraint shown here by not bothering the team that just eliminated you from the Eastern Conference finals. Yeah, they probably don’t want to trade you their head coach.
The Knicks probably had to fire Thibodeau. You’ve seen the jokes online — he probably wouldn’t have played nine players even if he was coaching a baseball team. The Knicks were exhausted in that conference finals series against the Pacers, and after five years in charge, most locker rooms need a new voice when they aren’t crossing the finish line and hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
That’s part of what makes New York’s strategy a little bit fascinating, if it were to somehow work after at least a handful of formal rejections. There’s a clear tier of NBA coaches who are good at their jobs but are not having the required success in the playoffs to remain employed long term. Maybe they can catch an organization at a crossroads, trading irrelevant picks and project role players for a proven entity.
The Phoenix Suns just hired Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Jordan Ott. Cavs assistant Johnnie Bryant was the runner-up for Phoenix’s opening and could emerge as a candidate for the Knicks, where he coached from 2020 to 2024. Interestingly enough, the Knicks have not made a known inquiry on Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson, who won NBA Coach of the Year honors just last month but failed to get out of the second round against the Pacers.
It’s improbable that the Knicks are going to hire away somebody’s head coach. But they seemingly do not have any other plan, so it’s almost hard to blame them for trying.
