New York Knicks: Lessons Tom Thibodeau hopefully learned

Building relationships with players

The final issue that Thibodeau has hopefully corrected is the inability to relate to his players. Thibodeau has been known to be abrasive, with harsh post-game interviews, a tendency to speak his mind, and stories of pushing players to the brink. However, that mentality doesn’t jive with many of today’s players.

To be successful in today’s NBA, Thibodeau will need to tone back the aggressive mantra a little and connect with his players. He’s not being asked to become a player’s coach, but he needs to build and sustain relationships.

Bringing on Payne, Bryant, and Woodson – who are all known for developing and maintaining relationships – will help Thibodeau in that area. But Thibodeau is still the lead man of the team and will need to be approachable. Of course, he’ll need to find a balance in order to maintain high expectations and over-prepare his team, because that is what successful coaches do.

Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors and Popovich of the Spurs are two noteworthy coaches in their ability to have relationships with their players while keeping expectations high. Both teams have won numerous championships under their leadership (three for the Warriors, five for the Spurs) and continue to perform at high levels.

Let’s take it another step further; as we saw in The Last Dance documentary, Phil Jackson connected with his players on a deeper level, which created a trust between him and his players and enabled them to play at a high level. Now, each player is different from what type of communication they need. But as I wrote a while back, Jackson understood each player’s mentality (especially his top performers). He had an individualized approach to fostering trust, respect, and understanding that galvanized them to be the best.

If Thibodeau can grasp these three concepts while managing the Knicks, then the team should be in good shape to move forward in their rebuild process. Let’s hope that his time in New York does not end the same way it did in Chicago and Minnesota.