The Knicks knew they wanted to fire Tom Thibodeau. After that? Well, you're seeing it

New York Times

a day ago

INDIANAPOLIS — Firing Tom Thibodeau was the plan.
For all of you who keep wondering what coaching search playbook the New York Knicks are working from, confused by the fact that they didn't have a realistic replacement in mind when they fired the most successful coach in their last quarter century on June 3 and are now trying to steal other team's head coaches as if this is an episode of 'NBA Bachelor,' you're missing the revelation here.
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The Knicks, and owner James Dolan most of all, were done with Thibodeau long before he led them to their first East finals appearance since 2000. Everything that came after the choice to send him packing, with the Knicks having now been denied permission to speak to another team's head coach five times (that we know of), was a wild goose chase the likes of which we've never seen in the Association.
By the time Game 3 of the finals tipped off at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Wednesday, when so many front office types and staffers on hand were chatting about the Knicks nonsense before the game, Chicago's Billy Donovan had been added to to the list that already included the Houston Rockets' Ime Udoka, Minnesota's Chris Finch, Atlanta's Quin Snyder and Dallas' Jason Kidd. While there are still some who wonder if Kidd might try to push his way out, or perhaps inspire Mavericks ownership to give him an extension in lieu of such a move, the Mavericks have been adamant internally that Kidd isn't going anywhere.
For the sake of additional context, I spent part of Wednesday evening trying to figure out which other current head coaches the Knicks might have attempted to contact. And while there were no new names revealed, it's worth sharing that league sources say the Knicks did not request permission to speak to this elite coaching crew: The Pacers' Rick Carlisle, the Warriors' Steve Kerr, the Bucks' Doc Rivers, the Clippers' Ty Lue and the Lakers' JJ Redick.
Now the coaches who were pursued are all very capable and widely-respected, to be sure, but the fact that the Knicks have chosen to conduct the search in such an audacious manner tells you all you need to know about the root cause of this ridiculousness. They were done with Thibs a while ago — never mind that he led the way on a historic run and was reportedly still owed at least $30 million on his deal. And chances are, the only thing that could have saved him was winning the whole damn thing.
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The rumblings about Thibodeau being in trouble were there before the playoffs, when the noise was loud enough to inspire several phone calls from yours truly to inquire about this topic. Some people close to Thibodeau said they'd be stunned if the Knicks did something that rash. Others close to the Knicks insisted that all was well — especially once they downed Detroit in the first round and upset the defending champion Celtics in the semifinals.
This is hardly the first time a coach was facing an all-or-nothing sort of playoff challenge behind the scenes. But unlike Mike Budenholzer in 2021, when his Milwaukee Bucks won the franchise's first title in 50 years, and after he was known to be in serious peril entering the postseason, Thibodeau fell short in those East finals against Indiana. The axe fell in stunning fashion three days later, with our James Edwards and Fred Katz expertly detailing all the reasons, and now the league at large is watching the Madison Square Garden mess that has ensued ever since.
Yet with the Knicks seemingly shooting air balls left and right in pursuit of employed head coaches, league sources say there is an increased Knicks focus on two former coaches who don't require permission to pursue: Mike Brown (last with the Sacramento Kings) and Taylor Jenkins (formerly of the Memphis Grizzlies). There could certainly be more names of (available) head coaches emerging soon, as a league source said the Knicks are planning on finalizing that list in the coming days. But Brown, in particular, profiles as an interesting option given the complicated nature of the Knicks' inner circle.
While Dolan is the holder of supreme Knicks power, and team president Leon Rose is the undisputed leader of the front office, executive vice president William Wesley (aka 'Worldwide Wes') continues to have the kind of influence that matters a great deal during times like these. For Brown's purposes, it certainly doesn't hurt his case that his close relationship with Wesley dates back to the mid-2000s days when Brown was coaching LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers (Wesley, at that time, was a league-wide power broker and one of James' primary confidantes).
As was the case with Kidd and Udoka, Brown interviewed for the Knicks position in 2020 before it went to Thibodeau. Yet while he didn't get the job back then, with some believing that Thibodeau had already been deemed the unofficial choice by the time Brown's interview took place, league sources say he left a very strong impression. He was hired by the Kings two summers later, then went on to deliver the best two-year stretch in nearly two decades for the long-struggling organization before getting fired midway through this season.
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As for Jenkins, he became the Grizzlies' all-time leader in wins during his six seasons, only to get fired with just a few weeks left in this regular season and be replaced by assistant coach Tuomas Iisalo. The move, which came after a stretch in which Memphis lost 13 of 22 games heading into the postseason, did not have the desired effect on the rest of their run (unless getting swept by Oklahoma City was the goal). His glowing reputation, it's safe to say, remains intact.
To have all of this unfold with the Pacers somehow still persevering, meanwhile, is quite fitting. The same team that handed the Bucks a gentleman's sweep, then did the same to the 64-win Cleveland Cavaliers before downing New York in six games, is suddenly looking worthy of being an NBA champion after downing Oklahoma City in Game 3 and going up 2-1 in these finals. By proxy, that means the Knicks might not have been as far off as they previously thought.
If they were thinking at all.