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It is officially official... Tom Thibodeau and the New York Knicks are finalizing a 5 year deal to become the newest Head Coach.
Love it or hate it, this is our new reality. I for one am very excited by this hire for a few reasons. This will usher in an entirely new era for the New York Knicks and the culture that Leon Rose, Scott Perry and Worldwide Wes want to cultivate at The World's Most Famous Arena.
What should be the expectations for the new regime you ask? Well I am here to outline some of that.
The Culture:
First and foremost the Knicks are looking for a major culture shift from the burning paper bag full of dog poop that has been on their porch for the last 20 years. Thibs and whoever ends up sitting next to him on the bench will undoubtedly bring a very hard nosed defensive mindset to the team. I for one hope that Mike Woodson joins him to really nail that down.
Growth:
Thibs has done incredible things with his teams. Whether that is getting the Timberwolves to the playoffs for the first time in 14 years upon his arrival or getting his Chicago Bulls team to cultivate and grow the youth in the organization. Not only having helped hone the skills of the leagues Youngest MVP in Derrick Rose but also turning Jimmy Butler into the player who he is today while Rose was out with his injuries. If he can get that type of production out of RJ and Mitch we are looking at years of playoff appearances.
Balance:
I know that everyone of us Knicks fans are committed to a rebuild and the youth movement but Thibs will absolutely have a team full of new veterans to utilize next season and giving the younger players minutes while also letting them see veterans in practice and during different in game scenarios while also letting them get more experience will expedite the growth process that we are all looking for in players like Frank Ntilikina, Knox and Dame Dotson (should he remain with the team, which I hope he does).
Fun:
Winning is fun and if Thibs can develop this team and we start winning games, the pressure starts to drift away. Guys get to have more fun during the game, experiment with some aspects of their skills (like Mitch and that handle and 3 ball we are seeing on social media) and getting out of their own way and not "playing not to lose" as we are so accustom to seeing late in games or when the team has a lead in the 3rd and utterly crumbles.
Knicks fam- We are starting to develop a plan for the future. Stay loud! Find us all over social media @theoutlethoops (FB/IG/TW) and keep the conversation going!