Donte DiVincenzo was watching the vote.
Last April, as the playoffs approached and the New York Knicks were on track for the franchise's best season in a decade. The Athletic Coach Tom Thibodeau was the top vote-getter in the most unpopular category after releasing an anonymous player survey. “The coach that players want” Even if only slightly I like to play for.
The margin was not close either, with Thibodeau receiving 43.6% of the vote, followed by then-Houston Rockets coach Stephen Silas, who came in second with 14.5%. Add to that the fact that Thibodeau has won this undesirable award twice and was also disgraced in 2019, the last time this poll was released, and you've lost the traditional leader in these new fields. His reputation as such is unmistakable. -The era was alive and well.
But after watching the Knicks (41-28) compete in classic Thibodeau style on a West Coast trip that ended in a loss against Denver on Thursday night, I was impressed by their ability to remain among the best in the Eastern Conference. You'll be amazed (Boston) despite a string of terrible injuries to key players, and today's players need to understand that they're completely wrong about the often-criticized 66-year-old. was there. Just ask DiVincenzo.
DiVincenzo, who played for Golden State last season and signed a four-year, $50 million contract with New York last summer, said: “That poll means nothing to me — sorry for the wording.'' No,” he said. The Athletic After the Knicks' win over the Warriors on Monday night. “I saw the vote, but I signed it here.”
His fervent following continued from there.
“I'm not concerned about (Thibodeaux's reputation),” DiVincenzo continued. “I don't care. The players in the NBA now are (different) than they were before. Everybody wants a full offensive game. Nobody wants to come in here and practice. But this is my first year here, and I think he's done a great job of finding that balance.
“From the outside world, there's always (a different perspective). But at our house, internally, we have a good dynamic and we enjoy it and everyone loves being around each other.” I'm having fun. The outside world doesn't really know. All you know is perception. All you know is your history with other teams (that Thibodeau coached). And just his years with different organizations. But we had a lot of rest days, a lot of off days.”
And rumors I shared with DiVincenzo suggest that Thibodeau's practices aren't as difficult as they're being advertised these days.
“Not really,” DiVincenzo admitted. “I played for (Steve) Kerr with the Warriors and I played with Coach Bud (former Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer). I came here and all of a sudden I'm running track every day (in practice). I think what makes him so much better than anyone I've ever been around is that he's the most prepared. So he doesn't necessarily stand for two hours and run. Not that you have to, but when you’re there, you lock yourself in, do your business, and we get out of there.”
What Thibodeau's team will bring to the table in this “player participation policy” season, where the NBA finally rolled back its load management movement and the accompanying public outcry for improved defensive play and increased physicality. There is something appropriate. A kind of method. They are tough, with Julius Randle (out with a dislocated right shoulder on Jan. 27), Mitchell Robinson (out since ankle surgery in mid-December), and OG Anunoby (out with a loose bone fragment removed from his right elbow). (he missed 20 of the past 23 games). They play hard on both ends of the floor, and their No. 7 defense is thriving despite the aforementioned absences (Robinson and Anunoby in particular are elite on that end).
After wins over Portland (105-93), Sacramento (98-91), and Warriors (119-112), these (severely) undermanned Knicks upset the defending champion Nuggets in their final West Coast game. They used this method until the very end (they caught up to the runners-up, trailing by five points midway through the fourth inning, and lost 113-100). This was another strong sign that among many teams these days, the Knicks are a handful for teams to make the playoffs, regardless of who is available.
But if Thibodeau's Knicks can get him healthy in time for the postseason, that's a big deal. if – It's not hard to imagine a world in which the franchise is making a playoff run like it hasn't seen since losing to Reggie Miller's Pacers in the East Finals nearly a quarter-century ago. After all, they have about a month of convincing evidence (January 1st to January 27th) that they can play as well as title contenders if they give it their all.
During that period, which included the acquisition of Anunoby in a trade with Toronto and Randle, the Knicks went 12-2 while boasting the league's No. 1 Defensive Rating, No. 9 Offensive Rating, and No. 2 Net Rating. . This was some of the best basketball any team has played this season, including the Celtics.
But the uncertainty that comes with all of these illnesses makes it difficult to handicap New York's postseason prospects. It's still unclear when or if Randle will return. And as our own Fred Katz wrote on Thursday, the Knicks have learned from bitter experience that rushing Randle back after an injury is not a wise plan.
Julius Randle has been out of action since late January. (Brad Penner/USA Today)
Anunoby's schedule is also uncertain, and although he returned for three recent games, he had to sit out again due to pain from lingering inflammation. Robinson, meanwhile, participated fully in the Knicks' practice on Wednesday, but Thibodeau said he still needs “a while” to get back into shape and must be cleared by the team's medical staff to return. Even big man Isaiah Hartenstein, who played well while filling Robinson's void, remains limited in minutes due to an Achilles problem that has dogged him all season.
So back to Thibodeau.
As with any coach whose contract situation is questionable, the outcome of the postseason will certainly be important going forward. His current contract runs through the 2024-25 season, but league officials say he hopes to secure his future with the Knicks when both teams plan to revisit the topic this summer. ing.At this rate, the Knicks may be hopeful that they decide to accomplish something with Thibodeau. in front The recent rise in coach salaries.
For those who may have missed the economic boom on this front, take a look at our list of recent trades that have dramatically changed the market.
By comparison, Thibodeau's annual salary is around $7 million, according to league officials. All signs point to a likely well-deserved raise coming his way.
That also makes perfect sense. This roster was built primarily by Leon Rose's front office with Thibodeau's gritty mentality in mind, and is filled with players like DiVincenzo who thrive in a demanding, professional environment. In that sense, it's a much better fit than Thibodeau's previous mess in Minnesota (the fact that Jimmy Butler was the only core player taken out of Thibodeau's cloth was… problematic).
Franchise mainstay Jalen Brunson is known to be one of his biggest supporters, as is his father and Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson. Randle is also his type of player, a bruiser who's probably going to be rushing home by now. So was Anunoby, who fought through obvious pain in his convalescent elbow until the decision was made to give it more time to heal.
A more concrete example of their simpatico approach is that 29-year-old Josh Hart played the full 48 minutes (his fifth career triple-double) in the Knicks' win over the Warriors, and was thrilled to be able to do so. Think about how happy you are. He is under contract until the 2026-27 season. And on an interesting and related side note, third-year point guard Myles McBride, a 2021 second-rounder out of West Virginia, has shown some kind of developmental strides lately (he hit a career-high against the Warriors). (including 29 points). their depth.
In other words, despite all these injuries, the Knicks have no shortage of reasons to be optimistic about what's to come. As Katz reported after the Anunoby trade in mid-January, the search for another star to pair with Brunson will continue this summer – whoever it is. New York now owns all protected first-round picks from Dallas (2024), Detroit (2024), Washington (2024), and Milwaukee (2025), and owns its own first-round pick. have all. Of course, these types of assets go a long way in pursuing these types of star players.
But here and now, Thibodeau's focus is on the Knicks overcoming all this adversity and causing as much hoop hell as possible when it matters most. And although he is the coach that so many players would least like to play for, there seems to be full buy-in from those who say they couldn't be happier to have him as their coach.
“It's the team and that's our priority,” Thibodeau explained before the Warriors game. “That's why we want our players to make sacrifices and put the team first. But that belief has to be there. And when the best players have that belief, the whole team follows suit. I think you're going to have faith. I know we're working with a great group. It's great to be around every day. They give you everything they've got. So we know we're lucky, but we also know there's still a lot of work to do.
“And I think confidence comes from proven ability. For example, the fact that we won with players missing means we have the belief that we can do it.” Stay disciplined. , if you do what you have to do, you have a chance to win. ”
(Top photo of Tom Thibodeau and Jalen Brunson: Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
