The recent brutal home loss of the New York Knicks has raised a pressure around head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Per SNY.tv’s Ian Begley, the temperature has risen a bit on Thibodeau’s seat following New York’s depressing Sunday loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder. In front of a gasping Madison Square Garden crowd, the Knicks gave up 145 total points against OKC – an unexpected occurrence given Thibodeau’s specialization of defensive coaching.
Noted by Begley, the effort being placed by the Knicks has been lacking so far this season, which raised doubts and questions if Thibodeau can truly handle the club.
“I thought (Sunday) was just a readiness (issue). We just weren’t ready,” Evan Fournier said following the loss, raising speculations of Thibodeau’s ability to guide. “Noon game, whatever. I don’t know. But lack of intensity, just not doing what we’re supposed to.”
Despite stellar productions from Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, and new Knick Jalen Brunson, the club has been experiencing mediocrity on their offensive (111.7) and defensive rating (113.8) that ranks 18th and 22nd league-wide, respectively. They are also shooting inconsistently from the field, as they ranked 24th in field goal efficiency (45.4%) and second to the dead last in three-point shooting (32.5).
Thibodeau led the Knicks to a postseason appearance in 2021 for the first time in eight years. Since then, the franchise went spiralling down and just dwelling at the middle portion of the league’s competitiveness.
Holding a 6-7 card of this season’s standings, it remains yet to be seen on how Thibodeau can flip the Knicks for a much better result. They are slated to take a daunting five-game road trip that will continue to test the issues, facing the Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns and the Thunder.
