Tom Thibodeau Reportedly 'Had a Sense of Betrayal' After Being Fired by Knicks

After getting fired from his position as head coach of the New York Knicks in June, Tom Thibodeau reportedly felt betrayed by some people in the Knicks organization.

Speaking to Ian O'Connor of The Athletic, a source close to Thibodeau said, "But he also had a sense of betrayal. When you find out that people you helped either weren't with you in the end or didn't fight for you like you fought for them, that stings."

Prior to his firing, Thibodeau spent five seasons as the Knicks' head coach, posting a 226-174 record and leading them to the playoffs four times.

Last season, Thibodeau had the best roster of his tenure in New York thanks to the acquisitions of Karl-Anthony Towns from the Minnesota Timberwolves and Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets.

They combined with Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and Josh Hart to give the Knicks arguably the deepest and best starting lineup in the NBA.

Thibodeau and the Knicks parlayed that into a 51-31 record, and the franchise's first trip to the Eastern Conference Finals since 2000.

The Knicks eliminated the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics in the second round in order to get there, but after falling 4-2 to the rival Indiana Pacers in the ECF, the decision was made to part ways with Thibs.

Despite the Knicks' success under Thibodeau, a source told O'Connor that the coach was "philosophically misaligned" with multiple members of the front office.

The source added, "In their world, the players were 51-0 and Tom was 0-31."

O'Connor added that while Knicks president Leon Rose had "protected" Thibodeau from owner James Dolan on a couple of occasions previously, Rose was among those who decided they were "done stepping in front of the bus" for Thibodeau, as was Brunson.

Dolan reportedly attended exit meetings for players, coaches and other personnel, and O'Connor suggested that the owner's presence may have influenced those people to go into self-preservation mode by shifting blame toward Thibodeau.

Ultimately, the Knicks parted ways with Thibodeau and replaced him with veteran coach Mike Brown, who is 454-304 with seven playoff appearances and one trip to the NBA Finals over 11 seasons as a head coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings.

Coach notwithstanding, the Knicks enter the 2025-26 season as the perceived team to beat in the Eastern Conference along with the Cavs.

While the Celtics lost Jayson Tatum and the Pacers lost Tyrese Haliburton due to injury, the Knicks are returning essentially the same roster as last season, along with quality depth additions such as guard Jordan Clarkson and forward Guerschon Yabusele.

Whether Thibodeau was holding the team back is up for debate, but it is clear that the Knicks organization decided to make a change in hopes of a new voice in the locker room and on the sidelines getting the team over the hump and into the NBA Finals.

Brown's first regular-season game as head coach of the Knicks will be played Wednesday night when New York hosts Cleveland in a battle of the Eastern Conference's elite teams.