Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau joins former Kings coach Mike Brown on dubious list
Tom Thibodeau joined former Sacramento Kings coach Mike Brown on a dubious list Tuesday when he was fired after five seasons as head coach of the New York Knicks.
Every NBA Coach of the Year from 2018-23 has been fired. The list includes Dwane Casey (Toronto Raptors), Mike Budenholzer (Milwaukee Bucks), Nick Nurse (Raptors), Thibodeau (Knicks), Monty Williams (Phoenix Suns) and Brown (Kings).
Brown, Thibodeau and Budenholzer are three of the eight coaches in NBA history to win two Coach of the Year awards.
Thibodeau, the 2021 Coach of the Year, was dismissed after the Knicks lost to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals. He led the Knicks to four playoff appearances in five seasons, including their first conference finals appearance since 2000.
Brown became the first unanimous winner of the Coach of the Year award in 2023 after taking the Kings to the playoffs for the first time since 2006. Sacramento won 48 games to secure the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, ending the longest playoff drought in NBA history after 16 consecutive losing seasons.
Brown, who posted a 107-88 record in Sacramento, was fired in December after the Kings went 13-18 to start the season. He was replaced by Doug Christie, who went 27-24 as interim coach over the final 51 games.
Casey, the 2018 Coach of the Year, led the Raptors to the playoffs five times in seven seasons, including a trip to the conference finals in 2016. He was fired after going 59-23 in 2017-18.
Budenholzer, the 2019 Coach of the Year, guided the Bucks to five playoff appearances in five seasons. He led them to the NBA championship in 2021 — their first since 1971 — before being fired after going 58-24 with a first-round playoff exit in 2022-23.
Nurse led the Raptors to their first NBA championship in 2019 and won Coach of the Year in 2020. He was fired after missing the playoffs with a 41-41 record in 2022-23.
Williams took the Suns to the playoffs three times in four seasons. He led them to the NBA Finals in 2021 and won Coach of the Year in 2022 after leading Phoenix to a 64-18 record. He was fired after going 45-37 and losing in the conference semifinals in 2022-23.
