Tom Thibodeau and his New York Knicks are headed to Philadelphia for Game 6 of their first-round NBA Playoff series against the 76ers Thursday evening.
New York would have preferred to skip this trip. Unfortunately, it blew a late-game lead to the 76ers in a close-out scenario at home on Tuesday. The Knicks found themselves up six late, only to see Tyrese Maxey force overtime. Philadelphia then stunned the home crowd inside Madison Square Garden to win in overtime.
The Knicks finished this past regular season with 50 wins and as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. They have been an ascending team under Thibs since he took over as their head coach back in 2020-21.
However, there are some renewed questions about the veteran head coach and his role in the Knicks being unable to land a superstar over the past few summers.
A recent player poll conducted by The Athletic indicated that Thibodeau is a coach players would least want to play for. He came in with 46% of the vote. Doc Rivers of the Milwaukee Bucks was second (9.1%).
“He’s playing everyone 48 minutes,” one unnamed player said.
Related: Updated NBA Playoff predictions
Could Tom Thibodeau be on the hot seat if New York Knicks blow first-round series?
A deep run in the NBA Playoffs would likely salvage Thibs’s tenure in New York. But what if the team were to blow a 3-1 series lead to Philadelphia? That would likely change the dynamics.
You can bet Knicks front office head Leon Rose took note of this player survey. Why wouldn’t he?
As you likely already know, the Knicks have missed out on star players both in free agency and on the NBA trade block over the past several offseasons.
The signing of Jalen Brunson ahead of the 2022-23 season has proven to be a coup. He’s a legit NBA MVP candidate. But he was not anywhere near a star when the Knicks signed him in the first place.
This coming NBA offseason promises to be full of star players changing teams. LeBron James and Paul George will likely head the list of NBA free agents. The likes of Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo will undoubtedly be involved in trade rumors.
A premature exit from the playoffs coupled with the poll mentioned above could force the Knicks’ hands on Tom Thibodeau despite the head coach leading them to their best regular-season performance since back in 2012-13.