The New York Knicks been probing the National Basketball Association for a head coach for roughly two decades. Even though the hiring of Tom Thibodeau dragged for seven weeks, the franchise been running through head coaches and assistant coaches since the resignation of Jeff Van Gundy nineteen games into the 2001-02 NBA season.
Current Knick President Leon Rose was a former agent with Creative Artists Agency, and Tom Thibodeau was one of his clients. Leon Rose hired long time acquaintance William Wesley as the Executive Vice President. William Wesley, also known as “World Wide Wes”, was called a goodwill ambassador by John Calipari in regards to the University of Kentucky’s basketball program.
William Wesley was a well-connected consultant for Creative Artists Agency before being hired as an executive for the Knicks. With all the strong connections between the front office and the head coach, could Knick fans derail this current front office and head coach alignment?
There’s an old saying that states “pressure busts pipes”. When the Knicks are losing, Madison Square Garden becomes a microwave to certain players who melt under MSG’s bright lights in the presence of displeased die-hard fans who spent their hard-earned money on a Knicks ticket.
James Dolan has a history of making changes based on negative press and displeasure from the fan base. Growing pains are expected during the process of relevancy, however, it would be in James Dolan’s best interest not to overreact to a few bumps along the way to become a good basketball team.
If Dolan learned anything from the past, one thing that’s crucial is the stability of an organization. A culture of stability can catapult the Knicks from decades of losing into decades of winning. Stabilization of a work atmosphere and franchise will allow the front office to make sound decisions. It will even trickle down to the Knick players on the basketball court in a positive way.
Overall, it’s a great hire by the New York Knicks. Coach Tom Thibodeau is a man who has no time for lack of effort especially on the defensive side of the ball. His prior head coaching tenures didn’t work partially due to lack of cohesion with prior front offices.
It appears now that Thibodeau, Leon Rose, and William Wesley are on the same page. Turnover is going to happen as it always does with a new president. However, the Knick front office and head coach seems to have some remanence of stability. New York Knick fans have every right to be optimistic about the direction of the franchise under the new regime.