Why Tom Thibodeau took the Knicks coaching job and what his immediate plans are moving forward

Growing up, Tom Thibodeau would come to Knicks games at Madison Square Garden with his late father, Tom Thibodeau Sr. Years later, he would sit on the sidelines at the Garden, working as an assistant coach under Jeff Van Gundy.

So when Thibodeau said on Thursday that he’s always wanted to be head coach of the Knicks, it didn’t sound like hyperbole.

"This is a dream come true for me. This is my dream job,” Thibodeau said during his introductory press conference. “I’ve been there before, I have a great understanding of New York. I think we have the best city in the world, we have the best arena in the world and we have the best fans in the world."

Best city, best fans, best arena. It’s hard to argue that.

The problem for the Knicks, though, is that they’ve been one of the worst teams in the pro sports world since Thibodeau left in 2002.

The club has won just one playoff series in that span and has one of the worst winning percentages in the NBA over the last two decades.

Thibodeau on Thursday was asked how he planned to help turn it around.

“You go step by step. You don’t skip over anything. The first thing is you lay the foundation, develop a plan and then work the plan. The steps are incremental. You don’t make major jumps without going through each step. So I think the first step is to establish the work ethic and how we want to play,” he said.

The first step for Thibodeau will be filling out his coaching staff. Then he may conduct voluntary workouts with his players – and G Leaguers – at the team facility.

Then he, the coaching staff, and the front office will turn to the draft, free agency and the trade market.

Thibodeau said New York would use all avenues to try to improve the roster and that developing the current roster was paramount.

Here are Thibodeau’s thoughts on some of the current players:

“Based on film, I really think RJ (Barrett) has a very bright future as does Mitchell Robinson. Those are two who stand out. But we have a lot of young talent. I don’t like to make qualifications on people until I get around them.

“With Frank (Ntilikina) and Kevin (Knox), they’re both young guys that have talent. That being said, I’m not making any real observations until I get to be around them. Like most young players, there are growing pains you go through and there’s steps players have to take. Sometimes we measure guys against guys are already established and you forget the steps those guys have to take to get to where they are. It’s an important part of it. Understand how you get there is work, sacrifice and commitment. One’s determination and perseverance is critical to their development.”

Thibodeau said that the Knicks young talent is part of the reason he took the job.

Another reason? The chance to work with team president Leon Rose and top Knicks exec William "World Wide Wes" Wesley. Thibodeau, whose deal with the Knicks is expected to be five years, has known both Rose and Wesley for two decades.

“They’ve been involved in just about every major decision that I’ve made,” he said.

Many around the league saw Thibodeau as the favorite to land the job before the Knicks started their search. That assumption was based, partly, on the relationship between Rose and Thibodeau.

Rose said on Thursday that the Knicks went into the search with an open mind. The club interviewed at least 11 candidates for the job over a seven-week search.

“The thoroughness of the search is what we felt the fans deserved. We wanted to get it right,” Rose said. “Tom is the right person for the job and we look forward to collaborating with him as we build a winning culture.”

Rose expanded on why he felt Thibodeau was the right coach to turn things around for New York, which has won less than 40 percent of its games in each of the past six seasons.

“He’s a proven winner at all levels. His coaching principles and goals embody everything we want Knicks basketball to represent,” Rose said. “His commitment to the game, to his players and to deliver winning basketball is truly special. He will work tirelessly to ensure each player is held accountable, develops his skills, and a winning attitude and that the team comes to play every night. As an agent I’ve had clients and known many others who have played for Tom Thibodeau. they all have spoken highly of him and his coaching ability, especially how much they have improved under his leadership.

“There’s no doubt that our relationship gives me a level of comfort,” Rose added, “but I know and I’ve watched him work over the last 20 years and the fact that he’s won everywhere he’s been was an overriding factor.”

During coaching stints in Chicago and Minnesota, Thibodeau amassed the 11th-highest winning percentage (.589) among coaches who have been on the sidelines for at least 500 games.

If he wants to remain on that list, he’ll have to turn things around quickly in New York. After being fired in Minnesota – where he also served as team president – Thibodeau spent the past year and a half visiting teams and spending time with friends and family.

He also watched the Knicks occasionally.

“Obviously it was a challenging year. I also want to mention that (interim head coach) Mike Miller did a terrific job under trying circumstances. I know it wasn’t easy. But I thought there were some players that really stepped up and did a good job. But there’s a lot of work to do,” he said. “One of the most important things when you’re studying a team is just to look at efficiency and when you see you’re a -6.54 you realize there’s a lot of work. And hopefully we can get the players to play for each other and start building those habits.”

Thibodeau said he’d start building those habits as soon as possible. Once he gets his coaching staff sorted out, Thibodeau will establish a plan with his assistants and have the coaches touch base with the players to begin working with the ultimate goal of bringing a title to New York.

“We’ve got to establish a work ethic, you’ve got to build championship habits every single day,” Thibodeau said. “And then of course the ultimate goal is to bring a championship back to the city.”