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With the shocking firing of New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, people have been speculating who made the final call on the decision, whether it was owner James Dolan or president Leon Rose. While the firing of Thibodeau by the Knicks set the basketball world ablaze, some insiders aren't buying the team's spin on the matter.
In the latest blog post by NBA insider Marc Stein, he said that New York has “painted” the firing as a mainly Rose decision, but he reports that “few in league circles seem to be buying it.” If anything, Dolan was believed not to be a fan of the team's “organizational dynamics.”
“The Knicks have painted this as a Leon Rose-led decision, but few in league circles seem to be buying it. Rose and Thibodeau were close long before Rose became the Knicks' lead basketball decision-maker in March 2020,” Stein wrote. “The Knicks, in fact, hired Thibs as their new coach entering the 2020-21 season at Rose's strong insistence.”
“Dolan, meanwhile, has long been described by league observers well-acquainted with New York's organizational dynamics as a non-fan … which some attribute to Thibodeau's connections as a staff member to what one source described as ‘the old Knicks,'” Stein wrote. “It's a reference to the Knicks' teams coached by Jeff Van Gundy in the late 1990s that, until the past five seasons with Thibs in charge, stood as the last previous successful era of Knicks basketball.”
Other reports had it as a mutual decision by the Knicks for the firing
As many will debate who with the Knicks was responsible for the firing of Thibodeau, one other note that Stein would mention was how Dolan was involved in exit meetings with “select players,” which was said to be rare. Though people are debating between Rose and Dolan, ESPN's Shams Charania would say that it was both who came up with the path that the team “needed a new voice,” as he said on The Pat McAfee Show.
“As soon as the season ended, they started meetings internally, and James Dolan and Leon Rose, they believed the best path for this team to take the next step to win a championship was that they needed a new voice,” Charania said. “So Leon Rose and James Dolan came to the decision this morning that they were going to part ways with Tom Thibodeau. He's fired as their head coach.”
“As soon as the Knicks season ended they started having meetings..
They believe that the best path for this team to take the next step is with a new voice..
They came to the decision this morning that they're gonna part ways with Tom Thibodeau”@ShamsCharania #PMSLive https://t.co/DeHkaF1gSD pic.twitter.com/f2etVIwMkU
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 3, 2025
Initial reporting from Ian Begley would say that Rose made the call with Dolan's support via his work with SNY, so the coverage seems to have a plethora of ideas. Now, the Knicks look to find a new head coach to build off this past Eastern Conference Finals berth.
