One of the big criticisms of New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau appears to be an issue once again.
Knicks forward Mikal Bridges admitted that he asked Thibodeau to ease off his minutes. However, he suggested part of the reason is he feels the Knicks’ bench deserves more opportunities to impress.
“Sometimes it’s not fun on the body,” Bridges said, via Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. “You’ll want that as a coach but also talked to him a little bit knowing that we’ve got a good enough team where our bench guys can come in and we don’t need to play 48 (minutes), 47.
“We’ve got a lot of good guys on this team that can take away minutes. Which helps the defense, helps the offense, helps tired bodies being out there and giving up all these points. It helps just keeping fresh bodies out there.”
Bridges said Thibodeau was “not arguing” about the situation, but “gets in his ways” about leaning on his starters.
The criticism that Thibodeau leans too hard on his stars has trailed the coach throughout his career. Thibodeau’s starters notoriously maintain some of the highest workloads in the league, which has led to him gaining a reputation for being very tough to play for. Critics think Thibodeau’s approach risks injury and leads to players wearing down by the time the playoffs start.
Whether he intends to or not, Bridges seems to be backing those criticisms up. The forward is famously durable dating back to his time with the Phoenix Suns, so it is quite the admission for him to say he struggles a bit with Thibodeau’s demands.
Bridges is averaging a career-high 37.8 minutes per game this season, and all five Knicks starters average at least 35 minutes per night.
The regulars have avoided serious injury so far this season, though there have been scares that once again raised questions about Thibodeau’s methods.
Bridges is in his first season with the Knicks, so he may still be adjusting to the increased workload. He is averaging 17.2 points per game on the season entering play Wednesday.
