Chris Russo and Mike Francesa never had an issue disagreeing with one another over the years as former co-hosts of WFAN’s Mike and the Mad Dog. And now, the two again stand on opposite sides of the fence in regards to the New York Knicks’ decision on Tuesday to part ways with head coach Tom Thibodeau.
The move by the Knicks has already been discussed extensively by nearly everyone with a voice in the sports media realm, which makes sense considering how uncommon it is to see a firing of this magnitude.
Some understood the move, arguing that the Knicks have perhaps plateaued under Thibodeau. Others were less understanding, considering Thibodeau brought the Knicks to the Eastern Conference Finals, something no other Knicks coach had done in 25 years.
Both Russo and Francesa had opinions on the decision. But both were perhaps even more interested in discussing who in the Knicks organization ultimately made the call to fire Thibodeau, each blaming different big-name presences within the organization.
A video from a user on X that goes by “Funhouse” shared the differences in opinion between Francesa and Russo, compiling their thoughts from Tuesday’s edition of The Mike Francesa Podcast and Mad Dog Unleashed, respectively.
Francesa outlined how, in his eyes, this move is coming solely from Knicks’ team president Leon Rose, largely absolving owner James Dolan from any blame in this decision.
“I don’t care what you think of Jim Dolan,” said Francesa. “I don’t care what you think you have heard or what you know. This was Leon Rose’s decision, this was not James Dolan’s decision. I feel like I have that on very good authority. I feel very comfortable with that. And like I said, I tell you with complete, complete faith in this information, that this was Leon Rose’s decision and nobody else’s. I feel 100 percent confident about that.”
Russo, meanwhile, explained how he believes that this move comes from the top down, with James Dolan making the final call about Thibodeau.
“This is about Dolan,” said Russo. “Don’t let anybody in America hear you say, ‘Ah, this is Leon Rose.’ Nonsense, nonsense! I don’t wanna hear from Rose. Everybody knows Rose had nothing to do with this. This is Dolan, this is not Leon Rose. Please, don’t go to Leon Rose. It’s not him, this has nothing to do with Leon Rose.
“Leon Rose was his agent, for crying out loud. You think he is going to give him a three-year extension last year at the end of the season, and then the agent then fire him when he gets to the Conference Finals the next year. I mean, come on, Leon is too smart for that nonsense. There is no way he would have done that. He hired him, then he gave him a contract extension, and then they go to an Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in a quarter of a century. And he decided to dump him? Ah, come on, if you believe that, you believe in the tooth fairy. I made a few calls before this show. They all told me the same thing. Dolan did this.”
Mike vs. The Mad Dog. This is priceless.
Mike Francesa has it on good authority that Leon Rose alone fired Tom Thibodeau. He is 100% confident about this.
Mad Dog Russo has it on good authority that James Dolan alone fired Tom Thibodeau. He is 100% confident about this. pic.twitter.com/NGfsXHFhgR
— Funhouse (@BackAftaThis) June 3, 2025
What we essentially have here is a source-off between Russo and Francesa.
And while neither is an NBA insider by any means, they both have an incredibly established presence in the sports media landscape, especially in New York City, where the two partnered together with great success for years.
With that in mind, both likely have plenty of sources in or around the Knicks organization with insight into the matter. So it is certainly a bit surprising to see them differ so much here.