What Suns' Coaching Decision Means For Knicks' Search After Tom Thibodeau News
What Suns' Coaching Decision Means For Knicks' Search After Tom Thibodeau News originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
There is only one more head coach opening in the NBA after the Phoenix Suns made their head coaching decision on Wednesday.
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Phoenix hired Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Jordan Ott as their new head coach on Wednesday as he will now fill the vacancy left by Mike Budenholzer, who was fired by the Suns after the season.
With Phoenix making their decision on Wednesday, that now leaves the New York Knicks as the only team left with a coaching vacancy.
Of course, this comes after they made the shocking decision to fire Tom Thibodeau on Tuesday after he helped lead them to their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2000.
New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau.© Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
With the Suns' hiring Ott on Wednesday, what does that now mean for New York's search for their new head coach?
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Phoenix had narrowed down their coaching search between both Ott and another Cavaliers assistant coach, Johnnie Bryant.
With them electing to hire Ott, Bryant now becomes a lead candidate for the Knicks as he has been linked to their head coaching vacancy after firing Thibodeau on Tuesday.
Of course, New York will also look at other candidates that could include two coaches that were fired last season in Michael Malone and Mike Brown.
Former Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone© Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Some have also linked UConn coach Dan Hurley to the Knicks as well as former Villanova coach Jay Wright, due to his experience coaching Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges in college.
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Despite this, the Knicks have not named any candidates for their open position thus far but expect Bryant to be a subject of interest for them after the Suns decided to pass him up for Ott.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
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