When the NBA Board of Governors voted Thursday on a plan to resume the season, the Knicks, along with the other seven teams left out of the picture, did not vote against the plan and try to force their way into the bubble in Orlando. For the Knicks, there was a willingness to officially end this season and move on to the future.
While Leon Rose has made additions to his front office in his first official moves as team president, the real task is to find a coach to lead the franchise. While there will be arguments about defensive-minded coaches, offensive gurus and analytical geniuses, what the Knicks need most of all is someone who will last.
Consider this: RJ Barrett has not completed his rookie season yet and he is heading to his third head coach.
It's not an accident that continuity and stability lead to success. So as names are tossed out, maybe the most obvious choice is the best choice, and not just because he has a track record of success. Tom Thibodeau is the front-runner for the job, and of all the items on his resume, perhaps his relationship with Rose is the most important of all.
There are other names in the mix and you can make an argument for them. The Knicks are expected to begin interviews next week and hope to complete the process by the end of the month. They would like to get a coach in place before some other teams that could be in the mix with better rosters, such as Philadelphia and Houston, even get a shot to make an offer.
Kenny Atkinson, let go by the Nets just ahead of the suspension of the season, also is expected to interview for the job. Interim coach Mike Miller will get a chance to lobby to keep the job. SNY reported that former Knicks coach Mike Woodson will interview, although one person familiar with the situation said he most likely would be considered for a lead assistant role.
You don't get to be an NBA coach without knowing the X's and O's. Some are better than others, and there is a solid history that shows Thibodeau is as good as they come on the defensive end and underrated on the offensive end. He has taken teams to the postseason, has overachieved with outmanned squads in Chicago and Minnesota as head coach and has a long lineage as an assistant with Jeff Van Gundy in New York and Doc Rivers in Boston.
But with the notion that he not only is qualified but could be part of a like-minded pairing with Rose, the Knicks finally could end their constant shuffling of coaches and game plans.
When Phil Jackson took over as team president in 2014, he sought to bring in Steve Kerr as coach. Maybe, even if it would not have brought the championship rings that Kerr won with the Golden State Warriors, that would have provided a semblance of stability to the organization. Instead, when Knicks ownership balked at Kerr's conditions and salary demands, the Warriors jumped in and grabbed him, leaving the Knicks with a Plan B, Derek Fisher, that turned into a short-lived failure.
It has been followed quickly by a procession of swings and misses _ Kurt Rambis, Jeff Hornacek, David Fizdale and likely Miller _ who were unable to last long enough to make a difference.
"Well, I feel a little uncomfortable talking about a situation that is fluid and they have a coach in place that I worked with in USA Basketball in Mike Miller, who's an absolutely fantastic basketball coach," Van Gundy said on SiriusXM NBA Radio Thursday. "But irrespective of the Knicks, Tom Thibodeau is a great, great basketball coach. Like, great.
"And I think unfortunately for him, the perception of him on the sidelines as this gruff, nasty dude is not even close to who is he personally. Like, he is a great guy. He's fun to be around. He's enjoyable to be around, and he loves basketball. He loves NBA basketball and he works at it and he is elite in his profession. I hope he gets another opportunity to be a head coach, because if you look at his body of work, he certainly deserves it, and any team that may interview him or hire him would be very fortunate to have him as a head coach."
While Thibodeau has been successful as a head coach, he has been criticized for burning out players. There was some grumbling among young players in Minnesota before that situation fell apart a year after the Timberwolves made the playoffs for the first time in 14 years.
"He gets thought of as a defensive coach, but if you look at his best teams in Chicago and in Minnesota, they were very high-level statistically speaking offensive teams, and I think it's been overlooked when people try to evaluate Tom from the outside," said Van Gundy, who was the last Knicks coach to last at least four full seasons (five between 1995-2002). "Tremendous, well-balanced, good player development _ he's gotten young players much, much better. So not speaking about the Knicks' job, but speaking in general, Tom Thibodeau is one of the best coaches in the world and I hope to see him get another head job."
