There is a growing trend in the National Basketball Association. That is head coaches who simply did not deserve to be fired. On Tuesday, the New York Knicks fired Tom Thibodeau of New Britain, Connecticut, despite the fact the Knicks made the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to the Indiana Pacers. Thibodeau follows Michael Malone in Denver, and Taylor Jenkins in Memphis, who were released this season despite prior success.
The fact that Thibodeau got the ax is simply mind boggling. Only the Pacers and Oklahoma City went further than the Knicks in the postseason. Yet, Thibodeau, who did miraculous work with the Knicks this season, has stunningly found himself out of work.
To put Thibodeau’s success in the Big Apple this past season into perspective, the Knicks had a regular season record of 51 wins and 31 losses for a winning percentage of .622. They then beat the Detroit Pistons in the first round and then the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics in the second round.
So why in the world would the Knicks make the decision? Well, according to James Herbert of CBS Sports, the answer was simple. The Knicks’s only goal this season was “winning a championship for our fans.” When Thibodeau was unable to achieve that goal, he paid the price despite being one of the most successful coaches in the NBA. There are also reports Knicks management were not satisfied with how New York lost their first two games at home to Indiana.
Now Knicks management will have to find a coach who has a better resume than Thibodeau to justify their decision. The best two coaches with NBA head coaching experience available happen to be Malone and Jenkins.
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