Knicks' Josh Hart Calls Out 'Lame As Hell' Criticism of Tom Thibodeau After HC Fired

Josh Hart is no longer playing for Tom Thibodeau after the former New York Knicks head coach was fired last week, but Hart is still willing to go to bat for Thibodeau.

Hart called out fans for criticisms of Thibodeau and encouraged them to appreciate what he accomplished as head coach.

The Knicks decided to move on from Thibodeau despite back-to-back 50-win seasons and the team's first Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 25 years.

His players seemingly weren't in favor of firing him. After New York lost in the Eastern Conference Finals, Jalen Brunson emphatically confirmed that Thibodeau was still "the right guy" (11-minute mark).

Brunson had high praise for his former coach on his and Hart's podcast on Thursday.

"To have Thibs, to do what he did for my career, I'm just so grateful and thankful for," Brunson said. "Not enough things can be said about what he's meant to myself and my career."

Despite Hart and Brunson being fans of Thibodeau, New York ultimately felt it was time to move in a different direction. What direction that will be is still unknown.

The Knicks have already requested to interview five active head coaches, but have been denied interviews by each of those coaches' respective teams. If New York wants to hire a current coach, it will likely have to bank on that coach leaving their current team.

With the prospect of hiring an active head coach seeming like a long shot, the Knicks might have to pivot toward either an assistant or a former head coach. There are a few options available in terms of coaches out of work, like former Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone or former Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown, but there are also plenty of worthy assistants looking for their first head coaching gig.

New York has a long coaching search ahead of it, but in the meantime, Hart isn't going to put up with criticisms of Thibodeau.