The New York Knicks closed out the 2024-25 regular season with a 51-31 record and reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years. But the Indiana Pacers ended the Knicks' season in six games, extinguishing hopes of the organization's first championship since 1973.
Two days later, team president Leon Rose stunned the NBA by firing Tom Thibodeau, whose five-year tenure yielded a 226-174 regular-season mark and a 24-23 playoff record.
In the ensuing weeks, the Knicks cast a wide net for Thibodeau’s successor but hit a wall with every active coach they pursued.
Former New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau.
Former New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau.
© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Per ESPN’s Shams Charania, New York formally requested permission to interview Houston’s Ime Udoka, Minnesota’s Chris Finch, and Atlanta’s Quin Snyder — all of which were denied by their respective organizations.
With current head coaches seeming to be off the table, Charania expects the Knicks to operate with a sense of urgency, “I expect them to look today, tomorrow, and over the weekend into some former head coaches, maybe even assistant coaches at the NBA level right now.”
The NBA insider went on to list potential options.
“When you look at the Knicks, I think they’re going to look at more head coaches, former head coaches that are available in the marketplace," Charania said. "You think of guys like Mike Brown, Taylor Jenkins, potentially others. Michael Malone is also out there.”
New York’s search may include Brown — two-time Coach of the Year whose 454-304 career record includes an NBA Finals trip with the Cavaliers in 2007 — and Jenkins, who guided the Memphis Grizzlies for the past six seasons. Malone, who led the Denver Nuggets to an NBA championship in 2023, will also be a prominent target.
As the 2025-26 season approaches, the Knicks’ choice will carry significant weight: their core of superstar Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby remains intact. Towns, in his first year in New York, averaged 24.4 points and 12.8 rebounds per game, shooting 52.6 percent from the field. Anunoby produced 18.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.5 steals per contest while knocking down 37.2 percent of his threes.