Shams Charania reveals shock reaction to Thibs sacking: “Everyone around the league just stunned”
The New York Knicks stunned the league by announcing the departure of the head coach that just got them to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Just days after the New York Knicks were eliminated in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the team has parted ways with head coach Tom Thibodeau.
The news came as a bombshell on Tuesday, coming after the Knicks’ best season in two decades. The reaction was one of shock, even among those who are typically very well informed.
The news was broken by ESPN’s NBA Insider Shams Charania, who later revealed that he was receiving stunned messages from many NBA executives who were blindsided by the decision.
Charania said: “My phone is blowing up right now with executives, everyone around the league just stunned. Every player on this Knicks roster, you felt, had over-performed."
Thibodeau had been criticized in some quarters for his unwillingness to rotate his team, something that was blamed for some defeats at points in the season. But he undoubtedly helped to raise the team’s performance level and allowed a couple of key players to elevate their games dramatically.
Charania explained: “You saw Jalen Brunson become an all-NBA All-Star guard. Karl-Anthony Towns an all-NBA performer as well. A lot of Knicks players, Josh Hart as well, who tweeted out something positive about Tom Thibodeau.
“They all had great years under him but clearly the Knicks did not feel that Tom Thibodeau was going to be the coach to take them over the top."
There was a feeling among many in the league that Thibodeau had done well to minimize some of the flaws in this Knicks team. Even the two stars have notable weaknesses, with Brunson undersized and Towns’ propensity to commit cheap fouls that can keep him sidelined.
Nevertheless, he was deemed surplus to requirements by the Knicks and the front office is now tasked with finding a suitable replacement. In a statement released on Tuesday, the Knicks hierarchy claimed that they would concentrate on winning a championship.
“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,” wrote team president Leon Rose. “We can’t think Tom enough for pouring his heart and soul into each and every day of being the New York Knicks head coach.”
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