Tom Thibodeau’s exit from the New York Knicks did not surprise anyone, including Carmelo Anthony. The former Knicks superstar felt that it was the right end to Thibodeau’s days as the Knicks coach.
The New York Knicks had an epic postseason in 2025. They defeated the Detroit Pistons and defending champion Boston Celtics in the second round. They tried but lost to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Tom Thibodeau, who was at the helm, drew criticism for how he used his rotation. Former Knicks superstar Carmelo Anthony gave his thoughts to Thibodeau’s exit. He felt that was the right time, but he certainly showed his gratitude for the Knicks coaching.
Anthony keeps a pigeon deep in what led to the Knicks’ Thibodeau firing. Carmelo knows it’s a guaranteed decision on what he saw during his coaching tenure in New York.
Anthony was totally grateful for what Thibodeau did to the Knicks, but he admitted it was time to break up. Thibodeau was great in New York, but Anthony felt he couldn’t do anything more after the 2025 playoffs. Now there are potential alternatives coming, with Taylor Jenkins and Mike Brown as candidates.
The Eastern Conference Finals against the Pacers were a series the Knicks won. If Thibodeau had used his bench and had the optimum spin, the Knicks would have been possible. Unfortunately, Thibodeau went with what he was comfortable with, so it wasn’t.
That meant there was a short rotation and a limited dynamism at the offensive edge. Thibodeau was a defensive-oriented coach with limited offensive sets. Sometimes he even had questionable defensive decisions, such as making Karl Anthony’s town defend the boundaries.
“Everyone else thinks it happened overnight. It wasn’t just happening overnight. It was part of a behind-the-scenes conversation. Observing, analyzing and scouting Tibbs. He was under a microscope. It didn’t happen.
“It’s like a peak. You can take us here, but what adjustments are you going to make to get through the hump? Your bench is a big problem. Everyone knows that. He only plays six or seven guys.
“The Knicks need a bench. I’m not saying there’s no guy on the bench they can play in. When you’re trying to win a championship, it’s a fine line of adjustments you have to make. And he didn’t make those adjustments.”
For a long time, New York has had one of the worst NBA teams. They were always struggling in the 2000s and 2010s. That changed in the 2020s when Thibodeau took over and led the team into the playoffs. They were a consistent first team due to Jalen Brunson’s star power. But Tib deserves some love.
Since Thibodeau is out of the team, coaching search is on. It was a challenging time as coaches like Jason Kidd, Imeudoka and Chris Finch are not available. They contacted the team to inquire about availability, but were immediately denied.
Jenkins and Brown are the most prominent candidates at the moment. If other candidates become available, it can easily change. Even Michael Malone is a good option as DeAndre Jordan gave him his support for the job.
It will be interesting to see how the Knicks hire coaches. The Eastern Conference is widely open, so they must nail the decision. The Knicks will need to take advantage of this and reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
