Just one season ago, Tom Thibodeau helped guide the Knicks to the next step—the franchise made its first appearance in the Eastern Conference finals since 2000. New York was eliminated in the second round in the two seasons prior to that, which made falling two wins short of the NBA Finals a step in the right direction.
However, that wasn’t good enough for the franchise that had already mortgaged its future to put Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges alongside Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and Josh Hart. The Knicks needed to make a true run at the title, and they needed to do it quickly, prompting Thibodeau’s firing after five seasons in charge.
With the state the franchise was in, the Knicks focused on experienced NBA coaches in their search. They landed on ex-Kings boss Mike Brown, who Sacramento fired early in the prior season after a 13–18 start. Brown was with the Kings for two-plus seasons. In his first campaign, he led the franchise to its first playoff appearance in 16 years and was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year. But the momentum ran out just over a season later; in December 2024, the Kings blew a significant late lead to the Pistons and gave up a four-point play in the final seconds for their fifth loss in a row. The next day, the Kings parted with Brown, and he became the Knicks’ top target the following summer.
The big question entering the season was whether Brown could lead the Knicks to heights greater than Thibodeau could with mostly the same roster. New York couldn’t afford to take a transition year. If the group took a step back under Brown, the front office would have had to ask itself tough questions on whether the core it paid a significant price to bring in could win a title together.
The starting group of Brunson, Towns, Anunoby, Bridges and Hart answered those questions quickly, however, smashing their competition in a dominant run through the Eastern Conference. In Brown’s first year, the Knicks took a step forward by making their first trip to the NBA Finals since 1999. That makes the coaching change look genius in hindsight, but we couldn’t have known until New York’s recent playoff run (which now stands at an 11-game postseason winning streak—tied for the fourth-best mark in NBA history).
That’s credit to the players, but Brown has done a great job throughout his first year in charge. Ahead of Wednesday’s Game 1, now is a good time to take a walk down memory lane and assess why the move away from Thibodeau worked this quickly.
Why the Knicks decided to move on from Tom Thibodeau
Tom Thibodeau coached the Knicks for five seasons | Brad Penner-Imagn Images
The prevailing sentiment surrounding Thibodeau’s missteps was that he was too stuck in his ways. He was reluctant to adjust his rotations, which meant fewer opportunities for young players, and he played his starters too long, prompting injury and conditioning concerns.
And although the coach led the franchise to heights it hadn’t seen in 25 years, the Knicks felt the team needed a new voice to help it win a championship.
“Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans,” president Leon Rose said in a statement. “This pursuit led us to the difficult decision to inform Tom Thibodeau that we’ve decided to move in another direction. We can’t thank Tom enough for pouring his heart and soul into each and every day of being the New York Knicks head coach. He led us not only with class and professionalism for the past five seasons, but also to tremendous success on the court with four playoff berths and four playoff series victories. Ultimately, we made the decision we feel is best for our organization moving forward. Tom will always be a part of our Knicks family and we truly wish him nothing but the best in the future.”
The sudden firing was a shocking move, but Rose clearly felt that Thibodeau wasn’t the right coach to lead the franchise to its first title since 1973. Following his departure, ESPN’s Ramona Shelbourne reported that replacing Thibodeau was in the works for months prior to his sacking, seeing as the team wasn’t maximizing its talent. Rose met with several key players and members of the coaching staff after the Eastern Conference finals loss to the Pacers and it was clear to him that the organization needed a new voice after those meetings, per ESPN and Shelbourne.
Thibodeau went 226–174 and made four playoff appearances over his five seasons at the head of the Knicks’ bench. But, at the end of the day, it was NBA Finals or bust after the all-in moves for Towns and Bridges.
What has changed for the Knicks with Mike Brown in charge?
Mike Brown has the Knicks in the NBA Finals in his first year on the job | David Richard-Imagn Images
In the first year with Brown at the helm, the Knicks have a better offensive rating, defensive rating and net rating compared to a season ago under Thibodeau. This year’s Knicks finished with the third seed in the Eastern Conference; the same result as last season, but with two more wins in what was a surprisingly competitive battle with the emergence of the Pistons and the continued success of the Celtics.
Here’s a breakdown of where this year’s Knicks were at statistically under Brown compared to a season ago with Thibodeau in command.
Stat
2025–26 Knicks (under Mike Brown)
2024–25 Knicks (under Tom Thibodeau
Offensive rating
118.7 (fourth in NBA)
117.3 (fifth in NBA)
Defensive rating
112.3 (seventh in NBA)
113.3 (13th in NBA)
Net rating
6.4 (fifth in NBA)
4.0 (eighth in NBA)
Record
53–29 (third in East)
51–31 (third in East)
The improvements may appear minor, but they’re significant. Last year, under Thibodeau, Brunson, Towns, Anunoby, Bridges and Hart played 35.0 minutes per game or more over the regular season, with Hart playing a team-high 37.6 minutes a night. This year, no player went above 35.0 minutes per game, though Brunson hit that mark on the nose. Hart played seven fewer minutes per game and Anunoby went down from 36.6 minutes per game to 33.2. The decreased workload trend has continued into the postseason, too. Anunoby and Hart went down from 39.2 minutes per game apiece in last year’s playoff run to less than 34.0 minutes each game thus far over the current run.
The manner in which this year’s Knicks are beating the brakes off their opponents in the playoffs has certainly helped that cause, but lesser workloads for each core member began from the moment Brown stepped through the door. Now, the Knicks are in the midst of the franchise’s best playoff run in decades and have maintained fresh legs in the process.
Rose made a big gamble when he decided to let go of Thibodeau. After a trip to the Eastern Conference finals last season, anything but a trip to the NBA Finals this year could have raised questions. However, the Knicks have answered loud and clear, just four wins away from a title in Brown’s first year.
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