A former NBA MVP and New York Knicks guard recently made a bold statement about Tom Thibodeau's firing.
Former Knicks Guard, NBA MVP Gets Candid About Tom Thibodeau After Firing originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
It has been an interesting offseason thus far for the New York Knicks as they try to upgrade their roster and make a run at a championship next season.
Of course, the Knicks are coming off their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2000 last season, though they started off the summer by making a shocking decision as they fired head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Thibodeau had spent five seasons with the Knicks where he led them to a 226-174 record that included back-to-back 50-win seasons for the first time since the 1990s.
Despite this, New York felt like it was time for a change on the sidelines as they decided to fire him just three days after their playoff exit in a surprising decision.
Many have critiqued the Knicks for firing Thibodeau and former Knicks guard and NBA MVP Derrick Rose recently shared his thoughts on the situation.
“I talked to Thibs after that (his firing),” Rose said. “He’s good, he’s good, I think. You can’t be mad when you’re walking away with $30 million. You can’t be too sorry for him, but he’s in good spirits. Yeah, that’s my guy. We locked in until the end, but he’s good. Jalen’s still in New York. He’s going to be balling. Everybody wins, I feel like.”
"What do you think about the Knicks firing [Tom Thibodeau]?"
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 7, 2025
Derrick Rose: "I talked to Thibs… He's good… You can't be mad when you walk away with $30M... He's in good spirits."
(via @STaranto92)pic.twitter.com/C0HEc6xcAU
Of course, Rose and Thibodeau have a tight connection as Rose played under Thibodeau during his time with the Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves and Knicks.
By his comments, it is clear that Rose believes Thibodeau is good after being fired, especially thanks to the money New York still owed him.
Rose also made it clear that he believes the Knicks are still in a good place after replacing Thibodeau with Mike Brown as he believes that everyone won in the situation with New York’s core still together.
The Knicks hope that Rose is right as they try to take advantage of a weakened Eastern Conference next season to chase a championship.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: Basketball
