Mike Woodson was the last successful coach with the New York Knicks. Uniting him with Tom Thibodeau could help the Knicks become a competitive team.
During Tom Thibodeau’s presser, Shams Charania dropped a bomb on Twitter: Former New York Knicks head coach Mike Woodson is expected to make a return to the Mecca!
Woodson was the last successful coach to walk through the doors of Madison Square Garden. During his second to last season (before being fired by Phil Jackson), Woodson led the “Knickstape” era team to a 54-28 season, winning the Atlantic Division and breaking the curse of first-round playoff exits.
Rumors indicated that the front office might bring in another former head coach to help the Knicks next season. There was also speculation that Woodson, one of the 11 coaching candidates interviewed by the team, would unite with Thibodeau. It’s not clear what Woodson’s role would be, but there is evidence to support that he could address Thibodeau’s shortcomings.
Former Knicks coach Mike Woodson is expected to join the Knicks organization in a capacity, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Woodson led the Knicks to a 54-28 record in 2012-13, which marks their most recent playoff appearance and highest win total since 1996-97.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 30, 2020
Thibodeau has been reported to struggle with connecting with younger players. On the other hand, Woodson has been praised by former players such as Raymond Felton and Kenyon Martin for this very ability.
While Woodson oversaw the development of the Atlanta Hawks, players such as Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, and Al Horford all improved their games, demonstrating Woodson’s strength in this area. As the head coach of the Hawks, Woodson helped enhance the team’s offensive rating from 110.6 (ranked 29th, 2004-05 season) to 111.9 (ranked 2nd, 2009-10 season).
Woodson can also help with the Knicks’ offensive schemes. During the 2012-13 season, Woodson led the Knicks to the third-best offensive rating at 111.1. Furthermore, during that same season, the Knicks were ahead of the league trend when it comes to 3-point shooting. They were number one in attempts and made 3-pointers per game while ranking fifth in percentage.
Woodson can instill some of that old Knickstape 3-point shooting mantra to help this franchise become a modern NBA team (that is, if the team adds some shooters). This past season, the Knicks took a significant step back in 3-point attempts because of the roster construction led by Steve Mills and Scott Perry. They ranked 30th in attempted 3-point shots, 28th in made 3-point shots, and 27th in 3-point percentage.
With Woodson expected to join the team – and Thibodeau addressing that he has learned from his mistakes – we should expect that the Knicks will take more threes next season (and be a modern NBA team).
There is no doubt that watching the team play a more offensively balanced game of shooting threes, taking mid-range shots, and finishing around the rim will be a more aesthetically pleasing brand of basketball. Having Woodson back on the sideline would almost guarantee it.
While Woodson was an assistant coach for the LA Clippers, their lowest offensive rating was 110.3 (ranked eighth, 2017-18 season), while their best was 112.4 (ranked first, 2014-15).
Sadly, we won’t know Woodson’s official role with the Knicks until the NBA season. Knicks fans certainly hope that he is ready to leave a successful career under Doc Rivers to help his former team reach their potential.