The New York Knicks terminated former head coach Tom Thibodeau’s contract on June 3 following the team being eliminated from the Eastern Conference finals by the Indiana Pacers 4-2.
Thibodeau, 67, led the Knicks for five seasons, where they made four postseason appearances. However, following the loss to Indiana, the Knicks' president of basketball operations, Leon Rose, wanted to move in a different direction.
“Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans,” he said in a statement on June 3. “This pursuit led us to the difficult decision to inform Tom Thibodeau that we’ve decided to move in another direction.”
Rose continued, “Ultimately, we made the decision that we feel is best for our organization moving forward.”
New York has been searching for a new head coach after the drastic decision. However, it hasn’t been easy because they were declined from interviewing established coaches, who have positions already, such as Jason Kidd (Dallas Mavericks), Chris Finch (Minnesota Timberwolves), Quin Snyder (Atlanta Hawks) and Ime Udoka (Houston Rockets), according to ESPN insider Shams Charania.
Former New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau
Former New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Some sports personalities, including longtime ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale, aren’t pleased with their decision to move on from Thibodeau.
“Embarrassing describes the mess in hiring a coach by the @nyknicks front office,” the 86-year-old wrote on X Thursday. “They had a guy who has done a quality job in Tom Thibodeau if making a change should have your choice guy committed.”
He continued, “Being humiliated with all they have sought is pathetic/ hire Tom back!”
Following Vitale’s statement, the Knicks' search for a new head coach has continued, with a frontrunner yet to be announced.