By: Tommy Beer Last Updated: 8/11/11 7:53 AM ET | 6560 times read

Adjust font size:They tell us that there are eight million stories in The City. This one is about a guy who made millions but has had a really hard time catching a break since signing a big contract to coach in the Big Apple…

Back in May of 2008, Mike D'Antoni was weighing serious offers from two different organizations – the Chicago Bulls and the New York Knicks. Initially it appeared the Bulls were the odds-on favorites to land D'Antoni, who had averaged 58 wins over his final four seasons in Phoenix. One major obstacle in Chicago was the fact that the Bulls still owed five million dollars to former coach Scott Skiles, who was fired on Christmas Eve the prior December. Thus, Bulls management was financially hamstrung, which obviously limited what they could offer a new head coach. Eventually, the Knicks swooped in and brought major money to the table. Convinced by new team president Donnie Walsh that the organization could return to relevance and respectability, D'Antoni accepted the Knicks lavish offer of $24 million over four seasons. He was introduced as the 24th head coach in franchise history on May 13th, 2008.

Just nine days later, an upbeat D'Antoni found himself sitting on a dais in Secaucus, New Jersey, representing the Knicks in the 2008 NBA Draft Lottery. As it turned out, D'Antoni would have a front row seat for history, as the Chicago Bulls, who had an infinitesimal 1.7% probability of obtaining the top selection, shockingly won the lottery drawing. (I happened to be standing offstage as the results were announced that night and could see a wry smile briefly creep across D'Antoni's face the moment Chicago was proclaimed the big winner.) The following month, the Bulls selected prospect Derrick Rose with the #1 pick. Rose, of course, would quickly establish himself as an NBA superstar. Within the span of a couple of months last spring he was named the 2010 NBA MVP and led the Bulls to the Eastern Conference Finals. (We can only imagine the numbers Rose might have put as the lead PG in a D'Antoni-led offense. I digress…)

As far as expectations were concerned, D'Antoni knew exactly what he was getting into when he signed on the dotted line in New York. He would be paid handsomely to spend his first two seasons in NYC coaching a team that had very little chance of actually winning. Donnie Walsh would be systematically eviscerating the roster and stripping it down to spare parts, all in an effort to clear enough cap space in order to make a run at LeBron James and the rest of the prized free agent class of 2010. This was the plan all along; D'Antoni would have to wait two years before hopefully beginning to enjoy the fruits of the organization's collective labor. For two full seasons, for 162 games, D'Antoni would have to coach a ragtag group of misfits and space-holders, assembled primarily because most of them shared one thing in common: their contracts expired on June 30th, 2010. The goal wasn't so much to win basketball games as it was to just entertain and kindly kill time until Walsh could bring in the requisite talent required to compete in the NBA.

Just how limited was the roster D'Antoni was working with during this timeframe? During the 2008-2009 season, the Knicks team leader in minutes played and games started was Chris Duhon. Seriously.

Over the final month of the 2009-2010 season, D'Antoni leaned heavily on such NBA luminaries as Sergio Rodriguez, J.R. Giddens, and Earl Barron (who started at center down the stretch). Jonathan Bender and Larry Hughes, both now out of the league, also started games for the Knicks that season.

New York's cumulative record over that 24-month stretch was 61-103.

Eventually, the calendar finally flipped to July, 1st 2010. The apple of the Knicks eye was obviously LeBron James. Studs such as Dwyane Wade, Joe Johnson, or Dirk Nowitzki would have been terrific consolation prizes. As we know, the Knicks struck out on their top targets as LeBron took his talents to South Beach in order to team up with Wade and Chris Bosh.

Amar'e Stoudemire was one of the best big men on the market but was considered a long shot due to the likelihood he would re-sign with Phoenix in addition to a well-documented injury history and a previous relationship with D'Antoni that was at times contentious. However, the Knicks inked Amar'e and the move paid immediate dividends.

Stoudemire was an MVP front-runner for a time last winter after guiding the Knicks to unexpected early-season success. STAT averaged nearly 30 points and 10 rebounds in December, becoming the first Knick ever to score 30-plus points in nine consecutive contests.

Still, the Knicks weren't a legit contender with Amar'e as their lone superstar, which is why New York traded for Carmelo Anthony prior to the deadline in February. NYC had long been rumored as Melo's preferred landing spot and although the Knicks had to once again overhaul the roster, Anthony and Chauncey Billups were added to D'Antoni's arsenal on February 21st. The tradeoff was parting with starters Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari, and Raymond Felton, in addition to valued reserve big man Timofey Mozgov, which left the Knicks with a perilously thin bench.

The head coach had very little time to work with his new ensemble cast. The Knicks played just one day after the trade was officially announced (NY beat the Bucks at MSG, with Melo leading the way scoring a game-high 27 points). Later that same week, the Knicks showed what kind of potential they possessed when they beat the HEAT in Miami.

However, shortly thereafter, Billups got banged up, suffering a bruised quad after colliding with Dwight Howard on March 1st. Billups missed the next six games and invaluable practice time. Amar'e also suffered an injury late in the year, spraining his left ankle in early April.

Both players were able to return relatively healthy for the start of the playoffs, a first-round matchup with Boston; but that didn't last long. Chauncey strained his left knee in Game 1 against the Celtics and missed was sidelined the rest of the postseason. Then Stoudemire tweaked his back on a dunk attempt during warm-ups prior to the start of Game 2 and was clearly a shell of himself for the remainder of the series. D'Antoni was eventually forced to use reserves such as Roger Mason Jr., Jared Jeffries, and Anthony Carter in crunch time versus the Celtics. Point guard play is huge in D'Antoni's offense, yet he had no reliable PG to lean on. Melo led the team in assists during the Boston series.

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View Tommy Beer Archive Still, as the exit interviews were wrapping up in late April, the promise and potential heading into the 2011-2012 season was palpable. With Amar'e and Carmelo as the team's starting forwards, complemented by a healthy Billups at the point, this was a team that was expected to do damage. Assuming Walsh would continue to work his magic and add a starting center to the mix either via free agency or an off-season trade, expectations steadily rose.

And with just one season left on the four-year pact D'Antoni signed in 2008, there would be undeniable pressure to perform and succeed in a significant way. During his early days in New York, any knowledge observer understood it was unfair to expect the Knicks to compete while undergoing a massive rebuilding project. Thus, the Knicks embarrassing record was excused as a byproduct of Walsh's rebuilding efforts. D'Antoni took very little heat from the fans and the usually harsh tabloids. This was all about to change.

Then D'Antoni got his first dose of bad news when Donnie Walsh called him in early June with an unexpected and disappointing update: Owner James Dolan had decided he wouldn't be bringing Walsh back. Donnie and D'Antoni had been close since the day Walsh brought the head coach to New York. Losing an ally in Walsh was undoubtedly a tough pill for D'Antoni to swallow. Moreover, Walsh's rebuilding effort was by no means complete. D'Antoni was keenly aware that the Knicks desperately needed to bring in a legit center and flesh out the rest of the roster. Not only did D'Antoni lose a trusted colleague and man he relied upon to make the right player personnel decisions; the inexplicable decision by Dolan was a frightening reminder that the man who cut his checks was unpredictable at best, or simply irrational.

Of course, the news only got worse, as it became abundantly clear the players union and the owners were light years apart when the two sides met to discuss a new Collective Barraging Agreement. The owners officially announced the players were locked out in early July, and the bickering and anger seemed to only intensify.

The 2011-2012 season was supposed to be the year D'Antoni would finally have a full training camp and adequate practice time to work with a complete and competitive roster – a luxury which had eluded D'Antoni during his tenure with the Knickerbockers. Mike finally had the players necessary to compete, but hadn't yet had the opportunity to properly prepare and coach this group. A full month of practices and preseason contests would provide D'Antoni with this chance. In addition, rumors spread the New York front office was intimating D'Antoni needed to make defense more of a priority next season, and was pressuring him to hire a new assistant coach to serve as "defensive coordinator." Lawrence Frank was purportedly D'Antoni's top choice, but, as luck would have it, Frank was offered the head coaching gig in Detroit and accepted that position. (Mike Woodson is now rumored to be the new frontrunner for a spot next to D'Antoni on the Knicks bench.)

However, all but the most optimistic observers have abandoned hope that the 2011-2012 NBA season will begin on time. Most feel the question is no longer "if" the season will be cut short, but how many games will be missed by the time an agreement is reached

At this point, based on the publically stated positions both sides are currently espousing, the best case may be a shortened season that begins sometime in late December or early January. As a result, NBA teams would be looking at a truncated training camp that obviously wouldn't allow the time nor practice opportunity D'Antoni, or any coach, craves.

Worse yet, losing a full season to the lockout seems more and more to be a legitimate possibility. If this dreaded scenario becomes reality, where does that leave D'Antoni? His contract would have expired at this time next year, and uncertainty would cloud Mike's future. Would the new Knicks GM (whoever that might be), re-sign D'Antoni to a new deal? Maybe the Knicks would consider going in a different direction. Would they be tempted to chase a free-agent coach on the open market? Would former Knick forward Phil Jackson consider returning to the sidelines after spending a year in the woods of Montana?

Is it possible Mike D'Antoni would have spent four years in New York and never have had a truly fair shot at winning with the Knicks?

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If there is no 2011-12 NBA season the summer of 2012 could rival the summer of 2010 as the most exciting free agency period of all time. Could Dwight Howard, Deron Williams and Chris Paul all be free agents together? HOOPSWORLD's Eric Pincus breaks it down.

Wondering how the lockout might play out once the season actually gets closer? HOOPSWORLD's Mark Nugent takes a look back at 1998, the way the lockout progressed and how it ended in this exclusive!

When the New York Knicks signed head coach Mike D'Antoni there was a great deal of optimism about the future of the franchise. Now that optimism is significantly diminished and seems to be dropping by the day. HOOPSWORLD's Tommy Beer takes a look at Mike D'Antoni's New York Nightmare!
http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=20565

New York
Knicks
New York Knicks Must Fire Mike D'Antoni If They Want To Win a ChampionshipBy Kwame Fisher-Jones(Featured Columnist) on August 15, 2011 686 reads
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Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse more storiesNext Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
As NBA fans patiently wait and hope there will be a 2011-2012 season, every team must prepare under the assumption there will be one. So the first order of business for the Knicks must be to dump head coach Mike D’Antoni.

James Dolan made the right decision by letting Donnie Walsh walk. Now Dolan’s history of “questionable” moves should garner some skepticism, but this one singular decision is one moment in time that the Knicks owner made the right move.

As a person Donnie Walsh is as well-respected an NBA mind as there is in the league today. As a general manager he is intelligent, meticulous and diligent in putting together a quality NBA roster. The one thing Donnie Walsh is not is a champion.

Not as a coach, as Walsh’s career coaching record is 60-82 with one playoff win.

Not as a general manager, as the Indiana Pacers made the NBA Finals once and lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.

James Dolan, like most NBA fans, wants to win a championship. Also like most fanatics, he is extreme and unyielding in his desire in obtaining the Larry O’Brien trophy. Dolan has made horrendous move after horrific move and has received his fair share of criticism for making those moronic moves.

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

However, in this particular moment Dolan needs to no longer delay the inevitable and relieve D’Antoni of his duties. The coach who traded Rajon Rondo and said he would never make it on his team has peaked, and it should be apparent to all parties involved that the Knicks will never win a championship with D’Antoni at the helm.

His refusal to coach defense, yet alone bring in players who give maximum effort on the defensive end, has proven to be a flawed philosophy in the playoffs. In nine years as an NBA head coach, D’Antoni’s teams have never ranked higher than 23rd in points allowed per game and 13th in opponent’s field goal percentage.

What makes this so alarming is his teams have ranked in the bottom five of the league in opponents total points allowed and opponents points per game allowed eight of the nine years he has been a head coach. He is incapable of instilling a defensive philosophy that can be mildly successful, yet alone dominant. His lack of defensive competence ensures New York will not be having a championship parade any time soon.

His supporters will say he is a great offensive mind, but truth is he has been fortunate to coach great offensive players. This has allowed him to appear better then he actually is. The Knicks were and are infested with just all right. Both Walsh and D’Antoni have won division crowns, but neither has won nor seems close to winning a championship. So if you are not winning, you are losing. This may sound simple; however, it is the truest concept when dealing with sports.

SHould the Knicks fire Mike D'Antoni?
A) Yes, dont let him back in the building.
B) They should give him one more year.
C) No, he is not the problem.
Submit Vote vote to see results SHould the Knicks fire Mike D'Antoni?
A) Yes, dont let him back in the building.
46.7%
B) They should give him one more year.
42.3%
C) No, he is not the problem.
11.0%
Total votes: 227

The Knicks must replace all right with exceptional. Winners begets winners, period. It is no mistake the Lakers, Celtics, Steelers and Yankees are always competing for supremacy. They have people in place who have won before.

In short D’Antoni must be replaced by someone who has won an NBA championship, either as a player or as a coach. The Knicks must start implementing a championship atmosphere around their players and rid the organization of people who have not won the ultimate prize.

It is easy for people to provide complaints, but it is much harder for those same individuals to provide a reasonable change for those same complaints. Well, here is a change to go along with my complaint. The name that is about to be suggested will shock you. However, his resume and pedigree are unparalleled.

Rick Barry would be a perfect fit for the New York Knicks, and before you past judgment, read further. Barry as a player was an offensive force. He led the NBA in scoring in 1967 (35.5 points per) and four years later led the ABA in scoring (31.4 points per). More importantly in 1975, he along with Jamaal Wilkes, led the Golden State Warriors to their first and only NBA championship. The Warriors defeated a Washington Bullets team that had won 60 games that year.

Rick Barry’s playing career alone would warrant instant credibility. The wealth of knowledge Barry would bring to the Knicks would be invaluable. This move would be met with some criticism, mainly because he is extreme and can be an irritant. He is all those things and more, but most of all he is a champion and a teacher of the game.

His four sons have all gone on to play basketball at the professional level. That is correct: Barry was able to teach the game of basketball at such a high level that it enabled four of his closet students to reach the highest level of play.

Barry would be the perfect selection, but sadly this choice seems far-fetched. Barry’s commitment to excellence and basketball I.Q. are indubitable, but this hire seems very unlikely. Yet, a new coach is necessary if the Knicks want new results.

James Dolan has made it abundantly clear that he will make changes regardless of who is involved, and he is not concerned with what the masses think. So with Walsh gone and two of the most explosive players in the NBA calling Gotham City their home, the Knicks looked primed for championship runs, not playoff and possible division-winning runs. Their next head coach must be someone who can bring something to the table those players have not partaken in.

Firing Donnie Walsh was the first move in building a championship foundation, so it is imperative that the next move follows this blueprint.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/805860-knicks-must-fire-mike-dantoni-if-they-want-to-win-a-championship

The part about Rick Barry has no merit. He is a radio personality and his open window to coach is way past him.

I think the way to a championship is not with Amare and Melo. We need more.

Who would I get? I think Phil Jax is less far fetched than Barry, but do we have the players Jax thinks he could win with?

Phil is a starphuck. It could work, but way too obvious.

I want the knicks to win, and want MDA to be the coach. Why? Cuz he is the coach! I'll root for them to succeed!

nixluva wrote:IMO MDA is already a Championship Caliber coach. This team hasn't been championship calber!!! How would Jax do here with the teams we've had over the last decade? Jax had one of the best rosters in BB and didn't win it this year, so what would his chances be here with this roster? For those who think that the Coach you have is more important than the roster you have, I must ask how you can back up such a claim! Give this team a PG capable of running PnR and Drive and kick and a real Center and I think this team can get to the finals. We haven't had that and still don't have that so the holes that have been our biggest issues are still our biggest issues. It's not really about the coach at this point. Once you have championship level talent then you can nitpick about the coach.

Doc Rivers was 2 seconds from being ridden out of town on a rail before they got KG and Allen and won a title. That right there is exhibit A for how much more important it is to have a winning roster. Doc looks like a totally different coach now that he has players who can actually do what he's asking. I'd love to see MDA have a chance here with a roster without the holes. He may never get that chance, but I hope so.

nixluva wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:

nixluva wrote:IMO MDA is already a Championship Caliber coach. This team hasn't been championship calber!!! How would Jax do here with the teams we've had over the last decade? Jax had one of the best rosters in BB and didn't win it this year, so what would his chances be here with this roster? For those who think that the Coach you have is more important than the roster you have, I must ask how you can back up such a claim! Give this team a PG capable of running PnR and Drive and kick and a real Center and I think this team can get to the finals. We haven't had that and still don't have that so the holes that have been our biggest issues are still our biggest issues. It's not really about the coach at this point. Once you have championship level talent then you can nitpick about the coach.

Doc Rivers was 2 seconds from being ridden out of town on a rail before they got KG and Allen and won a title. That right there is exhibit A for how much more important it is to have a winning roster. Doc looks like a totally different coach now that he has players who can actually do what he's asking. I'd love to see MDA have a chance here with a roster without the holes. He may never get that chance, but I hope so.

I think if you look at 07-08 both D'Antoni and Doc had a big three. There was a difference that should be noted. Both Doc and D'Antoni had the opportunity to hire Thibs as their defensive assistant. Doc did and won a championship, D'Antoni hired his brother Dan instead and was in NY the following season.

That team they traded for Shaq at the All Star break. IMO Shaq hurt that team defensively. Everyone knows that Shaq is AWFUL on the PnR. He won't come out and if he does, he's too slow to really be any help on the perimeter. You also have to assume that it wasn't easy for Shaq to adjust to the Suns style in just 28 games!!! He avg'd only 13 ppg. Not to mention that they faced the Spurs who basically had the Suns number. With Shaq in there the Spurs exploited him allowing Tony Parker to go crazy and they used the Hack a Shaq too.

Michael Finley made a game-tying three in regulation, Tim Duncan scored 40 points, including a rare three-point field goal to force a second overtime, and Manu Ginóbili clinched victory with a drive to the basket to break the 115-all deadlock with 1.8 seconds left to win a classic Game 1.[7] Tony Parker would then pace the Spurs to their next two victories in the series, scoring 32 and 41 in Games 2 and 3 respectively. At the brink of elimination, Phoenix responded with a strong Game 4. But costly missed free throws by Shaquille O'Neal and key turnovers by Steve Nash helped San Antonio to prevail in Game 5, led again by Parker's 31 points.
Also notable was Gregg Popovich's use of the Hack-a-Shaq throughout the series to disrupt the Suns offense when Shaquille O'Neal was on the floor. O'Neal would shoot 64 free throws in the five games, making 32 of them.

You're a funny guy! Almost everytime you post something it's blown up when you actually take a look at the details.

In closing, D'Antoni defends the Feb. 28 decision to trade Shawn Marion for Shaquille O'Neal.

"We had gotten stale the way we were. I felt the best way to win a title was to do what we did. And I'd do it again," he said.

"I know Shaq's presence changed our style. But we needed a defensive presence to match up with Duncan, and we needed more second chances. Shaq provides both elements. I wouldn't have done it if Steve (Nash) wasn't on board. Who knows, maybe I convinced him. Maybe he convinced me. I thought about it a week and said, 'Yeah, let's do it.' Shaq gave us the best chance to win. I still believe it and I still believe we did everything possible to make it work."

Then again, after repeatedly sticking to that story throughout most of two interviews, D'Antoni abruptly went the other way on me.

"Had Shawn's contract not become an issue, I would not have done it. You cannot tell a player he's not as good as he thinks he is (Kerr's message the first time the new and naive GM met Shawn to negotiate an extension) and expect no carryover of negative feelings. We needed Shawn 110 percent. That's where the unhappiness started.

"Shawn deserves blame, too. He was in a great situation and earning a great salary. At some point you've to understand what a great life you have. On the other hand, you've got to make him feel important. That's when we got stale. If he were happy, we wouldn't have gotten Shaq. We had a great style and players who were perfectly compatible with it."

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/item_EratP4H5cwwdtpMdO0alIN#ixzz0KTKP5qKp

By the way, I don't think your only point was that there is a positive/negative to the Shaq trade. Whenever you become defensive in your posts, i.e. "You are a funny guy..." and side stepping the point I think you totally get it but can't defend what was is being said. D'Antoni never saw the flaws in his system or how lucky he was to have Nash to give the reigns of his team to. Hiring his brother, a high school coach, over Thibs was a mistake and a statement to his gm.

CrushAlot wrote:My point was that both Doc and D'Antoni were flawed coaches. One recognized his flaw and hired an assistant head coach to help with it. The other did not recognize his flaw, still hasn't won a championship and is receiving the same criticisms that he got when he had a team of all stars and the mvp at the point. I think it was telling that he said that he would not have made the Shaq trade without Nash's approval.

By the way, I don't think your only point was that there is a positive/negative to the Shaq trade. Whenever you become defensive in your posts, i.e. "You are a funny guy..." and side stepping the point I think you totally get it but can't defend what was is being said. D'Antoni never saw the flaws in his system or how lucky he was to have Nash to give the reigns of his team to. Hiring his brother, a high school coach, over Thibs was a mistake and a statement to his gm.

My thing is that Thibs won a title with Doc and the C's cuz they had a great mix of talent for both coaches to work with. That squad was really setup to be a great defensive team. Start with the middle and you have KG and Perkins. That's a SOLID core to your defense. Then you've got Rondo up top and he's a great PG to have in terms of defense. He's quick and long and athletic. That made it much easier for the other two All Stars to do their part on D. Thibs is a great defensive coach, but just like offensive coaches need talent to succeed so do defensively oriented coaches. I really don't give a crap about Thibs. My focus is on this team finally filling the massive holes we've had in the middle and to a lesser degree at the point.

Did you know that most teams use pretty much the same defensive schemes. In fact the Knicks play a similar scheme to that of the Bulls. The huge difference is the personnel.

The Bulls and Celtics tied for No. 1 in defensive efficiency this season, as measured in points allowed per 100 possessions. Both teams allowed 100.3. Chicago was also No. 1 in opponents’ effective field-goal percentage, which is weighted to account for 3-pointers.

Easy shots are hard to come by against the Bulls, who play the same brand of swarming, disciplined defense that the Celtics did during Thibodeau’s years as the defensive coordinator. They clog the paint, close the driving lanes and force opponents to make jump shots, preferably deep 2-pointers.

It is a five-man effort. Deng, long-limbed and athletic, is one of the league’s top one-on-one defenders at small forward. But he has coordinated support behind him, from Noah, Taj Gibson, Carlos Boozer and Omer Asik.

Notice that group of players that are at the heart of the defense for the Bulls? Do the Knicks have the same kind of defensive talent in the paint? In boston he had KG and Perkins etc. You have to have a core of defensive talent to work with. Don't give me an aging Shaq who can't move like he used to or the garbage we've had here as anything you can even come close to comparing with what Thibs has had in his last 2 jobs. Get the defensive talent and then we can talk.

nixluva wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:My point was that both Doc and D'Antoni were flawed coaches. One recognized his flaw and hired an assistant head coach to help with it. The other did not recognize his flaw, still hasn't won a championship and is receiving the same criticisms that he got when he had a team of all stars and the mvp at the point. I think it was telling that he said that he would not have made the Shaq trade without Nash's approval.

By the way, I don't think your only point was that there is a positive/negative to the Shaq trade. Whenever you become defensive in your posts, i.e. "You are a funny guy..." and side stepping the point I think you totally get it but can't defend what was is being said. D'Antoni never saw the flaws in his system or how lucky he was to have Nash to give the reigns of his team to. Hiring his brother, a high school coach, over Thibs was a mistake and a statement to his gm.

So you think that if MDA hires Thibs that he wins a title? You think this is the only thing that was needed for his team to get to the finals? Thibs is not a miracle maker. It's arguable that Thibs had a GREAT shot to get to the finals this year and so far hasn't gotten any further as a head coach than MDA has. Thibs had all the defensive talent in the world to work with and led them to being the #1 defensive team in the league.

My thing is that Thibs won a title with Doc and the C's cuz they had a great mix of talent for both coaches to work with. That squad was really setup to be a great defensive team. Start with the middle and you have KG and Perkins. That's a SOLID core to your defense. Then you've got Rondo up top and he's a great PG to have in terms of defense. He's quick and long and athletic. That made it much easier for the other two All Stars to do their part on D. Thibs is a great defensive coach, but just like offensive coaches need talent to succeed so do defensively oriented coaches. I really don't give a crap about Thibs. My focus is on this team finally filling the massive holes we've had in the middle and to a lesser degree at the point.

Did you know that most teams use pretty much the same defensive schemes. In fact the Knicks play a similar scheme to that of the Bulls. The huge difference is the personnel.

The Bulls and Celtics tied for No. 1 in defensive efficiency this season, as measured in points allowed per 100 possessions. Both teams allowed 100.3. Chicago was also No. 1 in opponents’ effective field-goal percentage, which is weighted to account for 3-pointers.

Easy shots are hard to come by against the Bulls, who play the same brand of swarming, disciplined defense that the Celtics did during Thibodeau’s years as the defensive coordinator. They clog the paint, close the driving lanes and force opponents to make jump shots, preferably deep 2-pointers.

It is a five-man effort. Deng, long-limbed and athletic, is one of the league’s top one-on-one defenders at small forward. But he has coordinated support behind him, from Noah, Taj Gibson, Carlos Boozer and Omer Asik.

Notice that group of players that are at the heart of the defense for the Bulls? Do the Knicks have the same kind of defensive talent in the paint? In boston he had KG and Perkins etc. You have to have a core of defensive talent to work with. Don't give me an aging Shaq who can't move like he used to or the garbage we've had here as anything you can even come close to comparing with what Thibs has had in his last 2 jobs. Get the defensive talent and then we can talk.

Thibodeau was known as a defensive mastermind who helped Boston win a championship in 2008 and get back to the finals last season. He also had that reputation as a workaholic and still does.

"Every time I walk in, I look up there to see if his light is on, and if he's in the office, I'd get on the court and pretend like I'm working hard," forward Luol Deng said. "I'm kidding. But every time I'd come in, his light is on. The video guys, the coaches, it's just been one of those years. Every time I came in, I'd get on the floor (and) someone is ready to come down.

"I don't know if he gets here at 5 or 6," he continued. "He's here early and he's the last one to leave."

Thibodeau's only other head coaching job was for one season at his alma mater, Division III Salem State, in the mid-1980s. He got that after three years as an assistant.

He then spent four seasons on the staff at Harvard before going to work under Bill Musselman with the expansion Minnesota Timberwolves in 1989. From there, Thibodeau embarked on a long path that ultimately led to this.

There were stops in San Antonio, Philadelphia, New York and Houston, and along the way, he developed a reputation as a defensive wizard and hardworking assistant, one that continued to grow in Boston.

The unknown, though, was how he would fare as the guy in charge.

"I knew in the first couple of weeks that he was here that we had hit a grand slam," general manager Gar Forman said.

The Bulls were looking for more after back-to-back 41-win seasons under Del Negro, and hiring Thibodeau was the next step in a massive overhaul.

They struck out trying to land LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in free agency, but they wound up with Boozer and one of the deepest rotations in the league.

It helped that Derrick Rose took another big leap, going from Rookie of the Year to All-Star and now an MVP favorite in just his third season.

He and Thibodeau immediately clicked, and the rest of the team bought in, too. Noah immediately realized Thibodeau was the right choice during their daily summer workouts.

"That's not something that every head coach does," he said. "To work out a player individually every day in the summer, to me that says a lot. At the same time, I feel like your coach is your leader."

Not since the Jordan-Pippen era have the Bulls been this good. They lost back-to-back games only four times during the regular season and never dropped more than two in a row, despite the injuries to Boozer and Noah. On defense, they ranked among the stingiest.

No team held opponents to a lower shooting percentage or outrebounded them by a wider margin than the Bulls, who were also second to Miami in average scoring differential. That was hardly a surprise, given their coach's reputation.

Players, meanwhile, mention Thibodeau's presence, his ability to command their attention. And, of course, his work ethic, his attention to detail.

At shootarounds, the Bulls will analyze every option in their opponent's playbook, and they will often look toward the sideline when they hear a call during games because their coach knows what's coming.

About the only thing they don't understand is why it took so long for the 53-year-old Thibodeau to get hired. His name often came up when there were openings the past few years, including Chicago's in 2008, but the wait stretched on.

Now, look at him.

"Fundamentally, he has not changed," said forward Brian Scalabrine, who played for Thibodeau in Boston. "His grind is just let's get this win today, let's focus on Game 1 in the Atlanta Hawks series. What are they going to do and then the adjustments we have to do. It's not about Boston, Miami or whether the Spurs lost."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/01/tom-thibodeau-2011-coach-of-the-year_n_856015.html

http://nba-point-forward.si.com/2011/08/15/top-100-nba-players-nos-11-20/

Anthony is a subpar defender, a master of lazy switches and emphatic pointing, through which he indicates that one of his teammates should very kindly guard the guy Carmelo was just guarding. It’s fine if you want to ignore this, delete the latest Knicks defensive atrocity from your memory and revel in the 25 points Anthony scored that night. There are reasons the Knicks played better defense without him, and the Nuggets’ defense improved when he left. Anthony is talented enough to be better than this, and perhaps the Knicks’ move to hire a “defensive coordinator” for coach Mike D’Antoni will create the kind of systematic accountability that is needed for Carmelo to play up to his full potential.

And quite frankly, with the roster we had the first two years why an aspiring head coach take on a a knick team with a two year transition plan even bother? It would be a stupid career move for him.

Crush, its ok you don't like mike but to fabricate things, and really believe we at this moment even close to be a contender is kind of foolish.

WE have no interior defense to speak of. Our roster at the 5 spot is very suspect at the moment. Rony has not proven in years he can be full time and "Jorts" is not the savior. Anything can happen going forward but this roster as it stands would be hard for even phil Jax to get out of the first round. Its a good team. How good? Too early to even think about it.

Any article that shows that PHX was willing to pay him? Lots of coaches interview, but its serious when the money is on the table. Does Ewing interview in Detroit make him a bonafide head coach? My point? Even if Thibs interviewed does not mean Thibs was interested in the gig given he might have had his own agenda and price. Try to understand, its not that I am defending MDA, its just looking at it objectively that much of the teams success and failure rests on the roster composition.