Knicks Rumors: Tom Thibodeau 'Can Taste' NY HC Job Amid Jeff Van Gundy Buzz

Former Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau reportedly wants to resume his coaching career with the New York Knicks in a major way.

According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, a source close to Thibodeau said: "He really wants the Knick job. He can taste it, and he may even be in the lead."

Berman previously reported Thibodeau and former Knicks head coach Jeff Van Gundy—who Thibodeau served under with the Knicks and Houston Rockets—are on expected team president Leon Rose's short list for the head coaching position.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst confirmed Thibodeau is a strong candidate to take over as the club's next head coach: 

The 62-year-old Thibodeau spent five seasons as head coach of the Bulls and two-plus years as head coach of the Timberwolves before his ouster in the middle of last season.

He went 255-139 (.647) with five playoff appearances in Chicago and 97-107 (.475) with one playoff appearance in Minnesota. Notably, Thibodeau helped the T-Wolves end a 13-year postseason drought in 2017-18.

According to Berman, the Timberwolves parted ways with Thibodeau because he wasn't connecting with the young players and was pushing them too hard in practice.

That could be an issue in New York since the Knicks' hopes of becoming a playoff team primarily rely on the development of young players such as RJ Barrett, Kevin Knox, Mitchell Robinson and Frank Ntilikina.

At 17-38, the Knicks are 13th in the Eastern Conference. They fired head coach David Fizdale after a 4-18 start and have been far more competitive under interim head coach Mike Miller at 13-20.

While their record isn't impressive, the Knicks have already matched their win total from last season. They also have some promising pieces in place in the aforementioned young players and forward Julius Randle, plus they figure to have an early pick in the 2020 NBA draft.

Although Thibodeau has never reached the NBA Finals as a head coach, he ensured the Bulls and Timberwolves were constantly competitive during his tenures and played a key role in the development of Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns early in their careers.

Thibodeau comes with concerns, but for a Knicks team that hasn't reached the playoffs since 2013, turning down a head coach who has made the postseason six times in his eight seasons may be a tough sell to the frustrated fanbase.