The New York Knicks had every chance to close out their opening-round series against the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night. But unfortunately for Knicks fans, they weren’t able to do so. And at least part of the blame for the loss has quickly been given to Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau.
With 2:57 remaining in the fourth quarter, Tom Thibodeau opted to sub out Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, two starters who have been incredibly important to the team’s success for years now, while the team trailed by just two points, with just one time-out remaining.
Thibodeau was seemingly banking that a stoppage of play would come to get them back in the game quickly, with the game hanging in the balance. But he was out of luck, as there wouldn’t be a stoppage of play for more than two minutes — with 27.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter. By that point, New York trailed by six. And while they gave it their best effort, the Knicks fell short as the Pistons came away with a 106-103 win.
The clear solution to Brunson and Hart being unable to get back into the game during the key moments of the game would have been for Tom Thibodeau to use the team’s final time-out while the game was still in reach. As you may expect, this was a topic of conversation from media members and fans alike on social media after the game came to an end.
“I like Tom Thibodeau quite a bit,” wrote SNY’s Jon Alba. “But he’s going to have to live with that one for a while.”
I like Tom Thibodeau quite a bit, but he’s going to have to live with that one for a while.
— Jon Alba (@JonAlba) April 30, 2025
“Absolutely brain dead performance from Tom Thibodeau and the Knicks tonight,” wrote NBC Sports podcast host Nick Kostos. “Embarrassing.”
Absolutely brain dead performance from Tom Thibodeau and the Knicks tonight. Embarrassing.
— Nick Kostos (@TheKostos) April 30, 2025
“I love Thibs. I defend Thibs. That was awful and indefensible,” wrote SiriusXM host Adam Schein.
I love Thibs. I defend Thibs.
That was awful and indefensible https://t.co/jH50MBnRz3
— Adam Schein (@AdamSchein) April 30, 2025
When asked about his decision not to call the final time-out to get his best players in the game during his postgame press conference, Thibodeau claimed that it was a “coach’s decision”.
“Just where we were with our time-outs. Coach’s decision,” said Thibodeau.
“Just where we were with our timeouts. Coach’s decision.”
Tom Thibodeau was asked about the Knicks not using a timeout near the end of the game with Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson waiting to check in at the scorer’s table: pic.twitter.com/3xG6IOOlvk
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 30, 2025
The Knicks still have two more chances to close out the Pistons in this series. But should the Pistons complete the 3-1 series comeback, this decision by Thibodeau will certainly be something that Knicks fans, and perhaps even Knicks ownership, will not soon forget.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.