RandBall: Ex-Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau, fired by Knicks, takes the fall again

The New York Knicks, fresh off their first conference finals appearance and best three-year stretch in a quarter-century, fired head coach Tom Thibodeau on Tuesday.

That sentence only makes sense within the context of Thibodeau's career and the label that he wears for better or worse.

In three career NBA head coaching opportunities, he has undeniably made his teams better than when he found them. That includes his 2½ years with the Timberwolves, a period that ended with the tumult of Jimmy Butler forcing his way out, but also featured a trip to the postseason in 2018 after 13 straight years of missing the playoffs. It took a few seasons and a spectacular 2020 draft that netted Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels, but the Wolves did find their footing post-Thibs.

The Bulls were a 41-win team the year before Thibs arrived in 2010-11 and hadn't made a conference finals since the last of their six NBA titles in 1998. He got them that far in his first year and two more conference semifinals, reaching the playoffs all five years with the Bulls before being fired. They have made the playoffs just twice and haven't won a series in the decade since he departed.

And now the Knicks are gambling on this being true: Thibodeau is a coach that can make you better, but he's not going to help you win it all. While he's become flexible enough to amend his coaching priorities on offense and defense, his style is still to play a very limited number of players the maximum minutes possible.

It's akin to grinding a pencil down so low that it can no longer be sharpened, which Knicks President Leon Rose said in PR-speak in announcing Tuesday's move: "Ultimately we made the decision we feel is best for our organization moving forward."

His tenure in New York was remarkably similar to his five years in Chicago. His Wolves career might have ended in similar fashion had Butler not blown things up. While there is some outrage in New York among fans, a lot of them seem to be treating the news similar to the way superfan Ben Stiller did on social media.

Maybe that's the best Thibs can hope for when it comes to his legacy.

• Wolves fans might be wondering the same thing Patrick Reusse mused about on Bluesky: If this can happen to Thibodeau, can it happen to Chris Finch? Wolves President Tim Connelly inherited Finch and is a big fan. "His ability to identify how this group can best play at a high level together is as good as anybody I've been around," Connelly said earlier this week. I think we are at least a year away (if not more) from having a real conversation about whether Finch can help this team win a championship or if he's merely presiding over their most successful playoff era ever.
• There will be no shortage of candidates to replace Thibodeau. This list of possibilities from The Athletic includes Wolves assistant Micah Nori.
• You should read two excellent Star Tribune pieces on Vikings great Jim Marshall, who died Tuesday at age 87: Reusse reflecting on Marshall through the years and a newsy life retrospective from Ben Goessling and Mark Craig. Marshall's durability and sustained excellence should have earned him a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Almost every eligible player near Marshall's career value made it to Canton. It's also worth noting that Marshall's infamous wrong-way run came in a 27-22 Vikings victory. His was a career worth savoring and a life very well lived, as I talked about on Wednesday's Daily Delivery podcast.

• About 18 very newsy things happened in the Twins game late Tuesday, but the biggest is undoubtedly Pablo López exiting after five innings with a strained muscle in his throwing shoulder. He's almost certainly going to miss at least a few starts, a blow to a team that has relied on pitching to course-correct after a dismal start.
• On the plus side: The Twins scored 10 runs Tuesday for the second consecutive night. Byron Buxton had another great bases-loaded at-bat that ended in a two-run single. Willi Castro hit two homers. And Royce Lewis ended his 0-for-forever slump with a two-run double. Maybe the hitting can pick up the slack for López's injury? At least as long as they are playing the A's.

• One more note on the Twins: I like Trevor Plouffe's color commentary. My only minor gripe is that he sometimes says too much, but if given the choice between too much and not enough I will always take the former.
• A WNBA team has started a season 8-0 just eight times in league history, and the Lynx now have half of those seasons after a blowout win over Phoenix on Tuesday. Minnesota made the finals the other three times they started 8-0. The last of those was 2017, which was the last time they won the WNBA championship.
• As someone who covered several high school softball state tournaments back in the day, I was not at all surprised by Tuesday's weather postponements. I'm not sure there was ever a tourney in North Mankato played entirely on schedule, and it will make for a long day today.
• La Velle E. Neal III is expected to join me on Thursday's podcast. I don't think we will be discussing "Wheel of Fortune," but I will leave you with this from Tuesday.