Should Tom Thibodeau shoulder some blame for rash of Knicks injuries?

It’s been a tale of three seasons so far for the New York Knicks. After their first 32 games, they sat at a middling 17-15. Once 2024 arrived, however, the team proceeded to have its best month in decades, going 14-2 in January. Since then, things have gone south, and the Knicks have dropped nine of their past 14.

The change in fortune for New York can be directly attributed to injuries. While the team fared well without starting center Mitchell Robinson, the squad has struggled with Julius Randle and OG Anunoby sidelined. Plus, star guard Jalen Brunson has also missed games recently due to different ailments, and the team is 1-4 without him in the lineup.

While injuries are common in the NBA, the spate of hurt players on the Knicks has some people wondering if head coach Tom Thibodeau should bear some of the blame. Over the years, Thibodeau has primarily become known for two things: creating elite defensive squads and perhaps overworking his players. Many teams use a rotation of 10 or more players, but the Knicks HC often just goes with nine or fewer. This results in more minutes for the starters — and increased wear and tear.

As Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post pointed out, Thibodeau earned his reputation for driving his players when he was coaching the Chicago Bulls. In the first round of the NBA playoffs in 2012, Derrick Rose tore his ACL, which ended up affecting the rest of his career.

Even though Rose defended him, Thibodeau has since been thought of as a coach who pushes players too hard. While he certainly doesn’t want them to get hurt, he admits that it is part of the game. “It’s sports,” he said, per Vaccaro. “It’s what happens. The only way to guarantee nothing happening is to not play.”

While Thibodeau expects a lot from his players, sometimes injuries can’t be avoided. Randle dislocated his shoulder after receiving a hard foul that sent him to the floor. Brunson hurt his knee after a collision with teammate Isaiah Hartenstein. Neither can be attributed to over usage.

“People get hurt,” Thibodeau added. “Everybody deals with something, everyone has something they’re dealing with. I know how lucky we are with the guys we have — Jalen, Julius, Isaiah [Hartenstein], those guys work their way through things and give whatever they have. We have a whole team full of guys like that.”

The good news for the Knicks is that it may not be long before all of their injured players are back. And when the grueling playoffs start, they’re going to have to be ready to play as many minutes as necessary.