Tom Thibodeau established a culture.
The Knicks coach was rewarded for his efforts with a three-year contract extension this week that will keep him at the club through the 2027-28 season. The extension comes after leading New York to its first 50-win season in 11 years. Under Thibodeau, the Knicks they made it past the first round in consecutive seasons for the first time in around a quarter of a century.
The book was released about Thibodeau from his previous stints with the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves. Common thoughts about the coach include that he can instantly improve a team in the win column. He also tends to get the most out of his players. But he sometimes relies too much on veterans to lead a team, doesn’t develop younger players, and isn’t the most flexible in terms of in-game or in-season adjustments.
With all that said, in four years Thibodeau took the Knicks from ineptitude to respectability. Thibodeau’s ability to get the most out of his players has stood out. Jalen Brunson It is Julio Randle evolved into All-Stars and All-NBA performers. Donte DiVincenzo became one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA last season, and Isaiah Hartenstein turned into one of the best big men before leaving as a free agent for the Oklahoma City Thunder this summer.
Tactical moves
While the lack of adjustments has been a criticism for Thibodeau at points in his career, he deserves credit for some schematic decisions he’s made over the past two years. Over time, he modernized the Knicks’ offense. In his first season as head coach, New York ranked 24th in three-point attempt rate per Basketball Reference. Since then, the Knicks have finished seventh, 10th and 11th in that category over the past three years.
In the first round of the 2023 playoffs, Thibodeau made the adjustment to have wingers like Josh Hart It is Barreto RJ set screens for Brunson after the Cleveland Cavaliers began trapping the guard when the center Mitchell Robinson it was the tracker. Although it took some time this season, Thibodeau finally began to trust Hartenstein as a playmaker early on.
In this year’s postseason Thibodeau had OG Anunoby guard Joel Embiid in a critical game four win against the Philadelphia 76ers. Thibodeau’s decisions to rotate regularly over the years, such as Kemba Walker, Derrick Rose, Evan Fournier It is Reddish camera Ultimately, they were the right decisions.
There is great synergy between Thibodeau and the cast. The team has an uncompromising identity that suits the coach best. But there may be a limitation to this. This means that the Knicks are not tailor-made for each player. Thibodeau will always have his warts as a coach. His decision to play Hart for a full 48 minutes in three playoff games seemed puzzling at times. Hart also logged a full 53 minutes in an overtime loss in the first round, which was a big talking point of the playoffs.
Going to smaller lineups
Thibodeau’s need to always have a traditional rim-protecting and rebounding center on the court had its positives. But it also restricted the Knicks from using different lineups. In three seasons, Thibodeau played the lottery Obi Toppin and Randle together for just 212 minutes combined.
The inability to find consistent playing time for Toppin played a major role in his departure via trade to the Indiana Pacers. At Indiana, Toppin saw time at both the four and five. Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle found time for Toppin to play Pascal Siakam despite both players being natural attackers.
After losing Hartenstein in free agency, the Knicks could consider playing Randle at center. The only question is how willing Thibodeau is to do this, as for years he has relied on a collection of great men bound in ink to look after the medium.
Overall, Thibodeau has been a very good coach and one can appreciate the value he has added just by establishing an identity for this current iteration of the Knicks. If he can be a little less rigid with his rotations and lineups, and continue to grow by making adjustments or experimenting with different lineups, then he could boost New York’s championship hopes in the future.
