Tom Thibodeau may covet the New York Knicks’ head coaching job, but he is unlikely to get it while Phil Jackson is in charge.
Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski wrote on Tuesday that he believes you can “forget about Tom Thibodeau’s candidacy” for the Knicks job because Jackson would be unlikely to hire the coach.
From Woj’s column:
Everyone can forget about Tom Thibodeau’s candidacy, because Jackson would never cede control – never mind to someone who sees basketball so diametrically different than him. Anyway, Jackson has never hid his disdain for the Jeff Van Gundy coaching tree; in truth, most everyone else’s coaching trees.
A report on Monday said that the Knicks are the job Thibs has always wanted, which is how his name came up after Derek Fisher was fired. Thibodeau had five successful seasons as head coach of the Bulls but was fired after last season.
One important piece of information to keep in mind is that this does not mean Thibodeau could never become head coach of the Knicks, it’s just that that would be unlikely to happen while Jackson is in charge. If Phil eventually leaves New York to join longtime partner Jeanie Buss with the Lakers, perhaps that could clear the way for someone like Thibodeau.
Brian Shaw and Kurt Rambis both have been mentioned as potential candidates for the Knicks job.
