Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau firing still ‘doesn’t make sense’ to Ty Lue

Ty Lue, head coach of the LA Clippers, strongly criticized the New York Knicks' decision to fire Tom Thibodeau, calling it nonsensical. Lue argued that Thibodeau had led the Knicks to their first conference finals appearance in 25 years, energizing the team and the city, and that the dismissal made no sense given this achievement.

Thibodeau was fired despite having three years and over $35 million remaining on his contract, shortly after the Knicks were eliminated by the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The organization provided no detailed public explanation beyond a statement from team president Leon Rose emphasizing a championship-focused direction.

Lue rejected the idea that Thibodeau should be blamed for losing to the Pacers, noting that Indiana performed strongly in the playoffs, defeating several teams including the Bucks and Cavaliers, and nearly reached the championship round. He questioned whether every coach beaten by Indiana should also be fired.

Lue further pointed out that Thibodeau's replacement, Mike Brown, now faces immense pressure to quickly achieve NBA Finals success—a challenging situation without a superstar like LeBron James, unlike Lue’s own experience when he took over the Cavaliers and immediately won a title.

Defending Thibodeau’s coaching methods, Lue dismissed criticisms about player minutes and workload, emphasizing that winning requires doing "whatever it takes." He highlighted his own experience managing veteran players and stated that Thibodeau’s approach was justified by results.

Overall, Lue considered the Knicks’ decision to be unreasonable and poorly justified.