OKLAHOMA CITY — Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle thought news of the Knicks’ firing Tom Thibodeau was “was one of those fake AI things” at first.
“No way. There’s no way possible,” Carlisle said Wednesday on NBA Finals Media Day. “I have great respect for Thibs. I go back with him a very long way. I was surprised.”
Advertisement
Carlisle’s Pacers were the last team Thibodeau coached against while directing the Knicks, with Indiana eliminating New York in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals in Indianapolis. Two days later, the Knicks relieved Thibodeau of his duties, suggesting a change was needed for New York to take the next step of winning a championship.
The Pacers, meanwhile, will play Oklahoma City in Game 1 of the NBA Finals at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday.
Carlisle is not only a friend and colleague of Thibodeau, but he is also the president of the National Basketball Coaches Association, a trade group for pro and college coaches. So when there is ever a surprise firing — and in the NBA it happens all the time — Carlisle is often asked about it.
For some context, the head coaches who won NBA titles in 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2023 are no longer employed by the teams they guided to titles, a testament to how fickle the industry is when reaching the ultimate goal does not bring much job security. Of the coaches who won the finals in those years and were later dismissed, only Nick Nurse held on in Toronto for more than three seasons after a championship, with his title coming in 2019.
“I always say shocked — sometimes you get numb and you’re not shocked,” said Carlisle, who has the Pacers in the NBA Finals (as a No. 4 seed) for the first time since 2000. “The Knicks have such a unique situation with so much attention and such a large fan base and such a worldwide following, it’s one of the most difficult jobs to take. The guys that have been most successful, Red Holzman, Pat Riley, Jeff Van Gundy, Rick Pitino, had a short run but a very effective run.
“There were a lot of lean years,” Carlisle continued. “Thibs went in there and changed so much.”
In five seasons in New York, Thibodeau went 224-176 in the regular season and 24-23 in the playoffs. The Knicks entered this year’s tournament as a No. 3 seed after going 0-10 against the league’s top three teams during the regular season. But the Knicks survived their first-round series against Detroit and then upset the defending-champion Boston Celtics to get to the conference finals for the first time in 25 years.
Advertisement
“I know how the players feel about him, too, so there’s not much else to say,” Carlisle said. “I mean, teams and ownership can make these decisions unilaterally, and it’s their right to do that.
“So, Tom will certainly be fine,” Carlisle said. “I don’t think he’s going to have any problem finding his next job. It’s just going to depend on when he’s ready to jump back in again.”
(Photo: Wendell Cruz / Imagn Images)
