Ben Stiller paid a heartfelt tribute to Tom Thibodeau after he was fired by the Knicks in the wake of their playoff loss to the Indiana Pacers.
Thibodeau led New York to its first Eastern Conference Finals since 2000 but the Knicks were beaten in six by the Pacers.
He was in charge for five years, turning the team from a laughing stock to title contenders. But New York fell short against Indiana and the team decided to enter a new era.
Stiller was one of the Knicks’ celebrity fans who was courtside throughout their recent playoff rollercoaster and on Tuesday he thanked Thibodeau for making the Knicks ‘relevant again’.
‘I am a Tom Thibodeau fan. He brought this team back. I felt he gave every bit of himself and was always looking to improve. I will always be grateful for how far he brought the Knicks,’ Stiller wrote on X.
‘They are relevant again. They are championship contenders again. The Knicks became winners again with him. Thank you COACH THIBS.’
Ben Stiller paid a heartfelt tribute to Tom Thibodeau after he was fired by the Knicks
The Knicks fired Thibodeau following the team’s conference finals defeat by the Pacers
Knicks star Josh Hart (L) also paid tribute to Thibodeau, writing: ‘Forever Grateful. Thank You!’
The Hollywood star added: ‘We should all take Thibs out to dinner and thank him profusely one by one for the incredible work of the last 5 years and the excitement we have all felt that we didn’t feel for a long time before he arrived. Respect and wishing him great success.’
Knicks star Josh Hart also paid tribute to 67-year-old Thibodeau, who guided New York to a second-round upset of the defending-champion Boston Celtics last month. ‘Forever Grateful. Thank You!’ he wrote on X.
The Knicks reached the playoffs in four of five seasons under Thibodeau, who led the team to its first back-to-back 50-win years for the first time since the 1990s.
New York had failed to reach the playoffs in seven seasons prior to Thibodeau’s arrival. His tenure ended with a .511 winning percentage, which ranks fourth in team history.
‘Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans,’ President Leon Rose said in a statement. ‘This pursuit led us to the difficult decision to inform Tom Thibodeau that we’ve decided to move in another direction.’
Rose went on to thank Thibodeau for ‘pouring his heart and soul into each and every day’ before adding the coach will ‘always be a part of our Knicks family.’
