After leading the New York Knicks to their first Eastern Conference finals appearance in 25 years, Tom Thibodeau is out. The Knicks fired Thibodeau on Tuesday, less than a week after the team’s Game 6 loss to the Indiana Pacers, the team announced.
In a statement, the team thanked Thibodeau for his contributions, but said the move was “best for our organization moving forward.”
“Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans. This pursuit led us to the difficult decision to inform Tom Thibodeau that we’ve decided to move in another direction,” said Knicks President Leon Rose. “We can’t thank Tom enough for pouring his heart and soul into each and every day of being the New York Knicks head coach. He led us not only with class and professionalism for the past five seasons, but also to tremendous success on the court with four playoff berths and four playoff series victories. Ultimately, we made the decision we feel is best for our organization moving forward. Tom will always be a part of our Knicks family and we truly wish him nothing but the best in the future.”
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The move comes as a massive surprise considering the Knicks are coming off a 51-win regular season, the team’s highest win total in over a decade, and a deep playoff run. Following a strong regular season, New York defeated the Detroit Pistons and the higher-seeded Boston Celtics to advance to the Eastern Conference finals.
After falling behind 2-0 in the series, the Knicks couldn’t battle all the way back. Despite winning Game 3 and Game 5, the Knicks were defeated by the Pacers in six games, falling just two wins short of an appearance in the Finals. Less than a week after Game 6, Thibodeau is out.
Tom Thibodeau was fired after leading the Knicks to the Eastern Conference finals. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
(Gregory Shamus via Getty Images)
Thibodeau signed an extension with New York as recently as 2024. The team still owes him at least $30 million as part of that deal, according to SNY’s Ian Begley.
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Knicks guard Josh Hart was one of the first NBA players to respond to Tuesday’s news. He said he was “forever grateful” to Thibodeau in a post on X.
Thibodeau was hired by the franchise ahead of the 2020-21 NBA season. The team showed massive improvement under Thibodeau in his first season. After finishing with a .318 winning percentage the previous season, the Knicks posted a .569 winning percentage in 2020-21. The Knicks made the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-13 season, though they fell to the Atlanta Hawks in the first round.
The team experienced some regression the following season, posting a 37-45 record. It was the only time in Thibodeau’s tenure with the franchise that the team failed to make the playoffs. The Knicks made the playoffs the next three years, falling twice in the Eastern Conference semifinals before reaching the Eastern Conference finals this season.
In five seasons with the Knicks, Thibodeau posted a 226-174 record (.565). Only three coaches in the history of the franchise that dates back to 1946 have won more games.
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Prior to joining the Knicks, Thibodeau spent time with both the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves. He had an extremely successful run in Chicago, leading the team to playoff appearances in each of his five seasons. The team made it all the way to the Eastern Conference finals in Thibodeau’s first season, where it fell to the Miami Heat. Despite a 50-32 record during the 2014-15 NBA season, the Bulls fired Thibodeau. He posted a .647 winning percentage with the franchise.
He was quickly hired by the Timberwolves. After a rocky first season, Thibodeau led Minnesota to its first playoff appearance in 14 years during the 2017-18 NBA season. The team regressed the following year, leading to Thibodeau’s exit.
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Given Thibodeau’s success — he has a 578-420 record and has won the NBA’s Coach of the Year award twice — he should be a highly-coveted option on the free-agent market. While Thibodeau has seemingly worn out his welcome with three separate franchises, his teams get results quickly.
Despite his regular-season excellence, Thibodeau is still searching for his first NBA championship as a head coach. He should get another opportunity to achieve that goal following Tuesday’s shocking firing.
