New York Knicks Players Had Strong Feelings About Tom Thibodeau Before Firing originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The New York Knicks’ decision to fire Tom Thibodeau after he spent five seasons leading the team was quite shocking to many fans and pundits around the NBA.
Thibodeau was fresh off a campaign where he led the Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 25 years. Many believed his role with the organization was rather safe.
The franchise opted to part ways with the head coach, however, as they aim to find someone to fill the vacancy that can lead them to the promised land.
Leon Rose and New York now have plenty of pressure to make the right decision this offseason, given Thibodeau just led the Knicks two games short of an NBA Finals appearance.
The decision might have been made for reasons beyond the team feeling the need for a head coach who can take them further.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Vince Goodwill, a couple of players felt as if Thibodeau played the starters too much with no ability to make proper adjustments.
There were multiple Knicks players who felt that Tom Thibodeau played the starters too much and had the inability to adjust, per @VinceGoodwill.
One Knicks Player said he didn’t feel like he could play for Thibodeau if the coach returned next season 🤯 pic.twitter.com/fqULlGMVuA
– Knicksmuse (@knicksmuse) June 8, 2025
On top of this, another player reportedly claimed he wouldn’t return if the Knicks continued with Thibodeau as their head coach.
Without Thibodeau having buy-in from 100% of the roster, it’s hard to imagine they’d be able to go any deeper in the playoffs than they just did.
The Knicks, who are aiming to raise their first banner since 1973, will have to get Jalen Brunson on board with whatever hire they end up making.
Not only does New York have a head coaching decision to make, but there are potential roster decisions on the horizon. Depending on who is hired, the team might opt to move on from Karl-Anthony Towns after just one season to further build around Brunson.
Needless to say, it’s going to be a busy offseason for the front office in the Big Apple.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
