John Jones-USA TODAY Sports

Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau Receives Dubious Distinction From Players

Originally posted on NBA Analysis Network
By Kenneth Teape | Last updated 4/22/24

New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau has garnered quite a reputation during his career in the NBA. His teams are known for being defensive-minded and physical, as he is looking for a specific style of play from his guys on the court.

During the 2023-24 NBA season, those core pillars have remained for the Knicks. But, they have been taken to another level because Thibodeau has shown more of a willingness to adjust on the fly and not be as rigid in some aspects of his coaching.

Despite the roster changing because of trades and players being injured, the Knicks won 50 games in the regular season, a plateau only the Boston Celtics also reached in the Eastern Conference. Thibodeau did a wonderful job with the team, but his reputation around the NBA is still mostly negative.

NBA players recently held anonymous votes on several different categories, shared by The Athletic. They voted on who the MVP is this season, the GOAT of the league and for which player is the best at different skills.

One of the categories was also the head coach you would want to play for the least. Thibodeau was the runaway winner of this dubious category, receiving 46.8 percent of the 77 votes that were cast.

As relayed by Stefan Bondy of The New York Post, players don’t like the practices that Thibodeau holds. He also has a reputation for running his starters into the ground, which was another reason a player voted for him.

“I’m too old for those practices,” one player said.

“He’s playing everyone 48 minutes,” another said. https://t.co/SG6YiFyPZW
— Stefan Bondy (@SbondyNBA) April 22, 2024

Both of those statements have been refuted by players currently on the Knicks. Donte DiVincenzo endorsed his coach a few weeks ago and said that his practices are not as hardcore as people around the NBA believe them to be.

When taking a look at the minutes played by players this season, New York doesn’t have a single person inside the top 10 in the NBA. Julius Randle, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and OG Anunoby are all inside the top 50, but when healthy, the minutes have been distributed pretty evenly.

Thibodeau is an old-school coach who gets the most out of his players. His style is one that can rub some people the wrong way, but when bought in, the results speak for themselves. New York is the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference in the 2024 NBA Playoffs and Thibodeau has played a big part in that.

This article first appeared on NBA Analysis Network and was syndicated with permission.

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