The New York Knicks do not appear to have a succession plan to replace Tom Thibodeau as head coach, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line.
Jay Wright and Cavs’ assistant Johnnie Bryant are “presumed” to be likely candidates for the role.
Bryant is currently a finalist for the Suns’ head coach job.
The Knicks also have interest in Ime Udoka and Jason Kidd. The Rockets would reject any interview requests from the Knicks.
It’s been reported that the decision to fire Thibodeau was lead by Leon Rose and approved by James Dolan, though many in the league are skeptical due to the closeness between Thibodeau and Rose.
The future of Tom Thibodeau as head coach of the New York Knicks was in jeopardy when the playoffs began, but it was widely assumed that a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals would give him another season.
“Simply, the Knicks believe they need a new voice to take this team to the next step,” said Shams Charania on Sports Center on Tuesday. “They felt like Tom Thibodeau’s voice had waned. They simply felt like they need someone else to take this team to a championship level. That someone else will be better suited to lift this team to that threshold.
“Over the last 24 to 48 hours, the Knicks have held meetings internally about Tom Thibodeau, his future, and the rest of the roster. And today, Leon Rose, the team president, and owner James Dolan came to this decision to part ways and fire Tom Thibodeau.”
Thibodeau joins Michael Malone and Taylor Jenkins as head coaches who were fired this season despite successful track records and reasonably good records during the regular season. Charania cites the NBA’s increase in parity and the belief amongst several teams that they are close to competing for a title as the reasoning behind the dismissals.
