Whatever Tom Thibodeau’s current game plan is, it clearly isn’t working. It is hard to justify keeping things the same after losing 12 out of 15 games, and blowing 20-point leads three times in the last 11 days.
New York has lost to the Nets’ B-squad, the struggling Lakers, the Trail Blazers’ backups, and the lowly Thunder, all in the past two weeks. So, with the All-Star break finally here to offer New York a chance to recuperate, will Thibodeau return to action with a new-look rotation?
It may be considered, but don’t count on it.
“You try to get some sort of rhythm and consistency, and that’s what we’ve been lacking,” Thibodeau said when asked if he would consider shuffling the deck. “So everything is on the table now. It has to be.
“It has to be merit-based. I'm not going to just give minutes to give minutes. That’s not happening. You earn what you get.”
In Thibodeau’s mind, some of the Knicks youngsters may not have earned more minutes, but plenty of his regulars haven’t done much to merit theirs. Alec Burks has struggled mightily in a point guard role, while much of the offense outside of Julius Randle has struggled as well. Many have clamored to see more of Obi Toppin and Cam Reddish, who both played less than 14 minutes on Wednesday, but neither have found consistent playing time despite showing flashes of promise in their limited opportunities. Elsewhere, rookie Miles McBride has been tearing it up in Westchester, but hasn’t played more than three minutes in a game since Jan. 2.
To be fair to Thibodeau, he has shown a willingness to reward youngsters for quality play, as Quentin Grimes has cemented his place in the rotation, but will he make more changes in response to the team’s poor play?
“You look at everything,” Thibodeau said. “How are we gonna manage this? It has to be merit-based. If a guy is playing good, he plays. If the team is functioning well when he's on the floor, he should play. That’s the most important thing. The team has to come first for everyone. This can’t be about what’s best for any one individual. It’s what’s best for the group. That’s the way it has to be.”
The team hasn’t been functioning well for weeks, but Thibodeau has mainly held tight with his rotations for much of the season. He stuck with the starters earlier in the year when the group was among the worst in NBA history in terms of collective efficiency, and with the season slipping away, he now has over a week to think about finally making some bigger changes to try and find a spark.
“We have a chance to reset here,” Thibodeau said. “We all have to take a hard look at what’s going on, and we have to figure out how we can do it better.”
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