NBA Teams

New York Knicks Coaching Staff and Assistant Coaches

By Salim Prajapati / 6 September 2023 09:59 AM

Source : reddit

New York Knicks coaching staff includes Tom Thibodeau, Rick Brunson, Johnnie Bryant and Darren Erman. Thibodeau is the head coach of the 2023 Knicks team.

Since taking over the lead role in 2020, Thibodeau immediately corrected the team's declining performance. In his first season, he steered the New York team to their first playoff appearance since 2013.

In the 2022-23 season, the Knicks finished 5th in the Atlantic Division securing a spot in postseason contention. They registered a comfortable 4-1 series win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Round One but suffered a loss to Miami in the Conference semifinals.

The Knicks will begin the 2023-24 campaign with a trip to Boston at Madison Square Garden on October 25. With a talented and experienced group of gaffers, New York is poised to compete for the trophy this season.

New York Knicks Head Coach

Tom Thibodeau was named head coach of the New York Knicks on 30 July 2020. Thibodeau previously worked at the Minnesota Timberwolves and Chicago Bulls.

The two-time NBA Coach of the Year, Tom began his coaching career in 1981 immediately after graduating college. He started as an assistant for Salem State and later coached the team for a season.

Source : twitter

Known for his defensive-minded coaching style, Thibodeau's first stint in NBA was with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minnesota announced his hiring in an assistant coach role in 1989.

He then subsequently began to upgrade his resume while accruing valuable experience working for various top NBA franchises.

Tom Thibodeau NBA Career

  • Minnesota Timberwolves (Asst) 1989-1991
  • San Antonio Spurs (Asst) 1992-1994
  • Philadelphia 76ers (Asst) 1994-1996
  • New York Knicks (Asst) 1996-2003
  • Houston Rockets (Asst) 2003-2007
  • Boston Celtics (Associate HC) 2007-2010
  • Chicago Bulls (Head Coach) 2010-2015
  • Minnesota Timberwolves (HC) 2016-2019
  • New York Knicks (HC) 2020-present

As an assistant coach for the Knicks, Thibodeau was part of the 1999 NBA Finals. 

He later became a member of the Boston Celtics, playing a pivotal part in their victory during the 2008 NBA Finals and guiding them to the 2010 NBA Finals in a dual role as both an assistant and a defensive coach.

After working as an assistant in five clubs and serving as an associate head coach for the Boston Celtics from 2007 to 2010, Thibodeau landed his first head coaching job with the Chicago Bulls in 2010.

Source : facebook

The following year, Tom won the NBA Coach of the Year award after guiding Chicago to a fantastic 62-win season. Then, in 2021, he received the honor again for helping the Knicks reach the playoffs for the first time in eight years.

He has led the Knicks to the playoffs in two of his three seasons with the team.

Besides, the Connecticut native has also worked as an assistant coach for the United States men's national basketball team between 2013 and 2016, contributing to Team USA's gold medal victory at the 2016 Olympic Games.

Knicks Assistant Coaches

The current assistant coaches for the New York Knicks are:

  • Johnnie Bryant (Associate HC)
  • Rick Brunson
  • Darren Erman
  • Daisuke Yoshimoto
  • Andy Greer
  • Larry Greer

Johnnie Bryant holds a prominent role as an associate head coach for the Knicks, overseeing the assistant department which comprises Rick Brunson, Darren Erman, Andy Greer, Larry Greer and Daisuke Yoshimoto.

Bryant has been with the team since September 2020. He is a former player development coach for the Utah Jazz and has a stature for developing young players.

Source : twitter

The 38-year-old is a former Utah Utes basketball player who went unpicked in the 2007 NBA Draft. He then redirected his focus to coaching and began tutoring at the Bryant Sports Academy.

Later in September 2012, Bryant was hired by the Utah Jazz as a player development assistant. Then, in June 2014, he got a promotion to be an assistant coach under the boss, Quin Snyder.

On the other hand, Rick Brunson, a former Portland Trail Blazers breakout star joined the panel of NY Knicks coaches in June 2022. After retiring from professional playing career, Bruson began his journey as assistant coach with the Denver Nuggets in 2007.

Similarly, Darren Erman began his tenure with New York in 2020. Erman has worked as an assistant coach for several different teams. He was a also colleague of Tom Thibodeau while they both worked for the Boston Celtics under Doc Rivers.

Source : twitter

Andy Greer is another assistant coach for the Knicks and has been with the team since 2020. After serving in collegiate basketball, Greer had a breakthrough in the NBA when he joined the Knicks for his initial stint in 2001.

Daisuke Yoshimoto joined the New York team in 2022 to work under Thibodeau. He is a former professional basketball player in Japan and has worked as an analytics and Player Development coach for other NBA giants as well.

New York Knicks General Manager

An American basketball executive Scott Perry contract as the general manager of the Knicks ran out after the 2023 season.

Perry enjoyed six years as the head honcho of the franchise during which he made a positive impact for the betterment of the club.

He joined the Knicks in 2017 and deserves credit for the partial turnaround of a woeful franchise that recently wrapped its most successful in a decade.

He became a part of the Knicks team in 2017 and played a significant role in the improvement of a struggling franchise, which just concluded its most successful season in ten years.

Scott, 59, embarked on his executive career in 2000 when he was appointed by Detroit Pistons for front office director position. After his time with the Pistons, Perry spent a season as the assistant general manager for the Seattle SuperSonics from 2007 to 2008.

Source : nypost

Similarly, in June 2012, Orlando Magic general manager Rob Hennigan appointed Perry to serve as his vice president and assistant general manager.

Perry started working for the Sacramento Kings as the vice president of basketball operations in April 2017. However, he did not stay in that role for very long. In less than three months, he left the Kings and took on the position of general manager for the Knicks.

However, his GM contract with New York expired at the end of the 2022-23 campaign and the club is exploring for his successor.

There has been increasing speculation among the team members and fans that senior advisor Gersson Rosas will likely fill the role of general manager.

The 45-year-old  Colombia native has been working in the NBA for two decades. He spent most of his time as the executive vice president in charge of basketball operations for the Houston Rockets.

At one point, he was also briefly the general manager for the Dallas Mavericks in 2013, making history as the first Latino GM in the NBA.

In 2019, Rosas left the Rockets to join the Minnesota Timberwolves management staff. Then, in February 2022, the Knicks brought him on board as a senior advisor.

Knicks Coaches History

Source : facebook

The Knickerbockers have had 26 head coaches in their history. The first was Neil Cohalan, who managed the franchise from 1946 to 1947.

Here is a list of all the New York Knicks coaches with their tenures:

Neil Cohalan1946-1947
Joe Lapchick1947-1956
Vince Boryla1956-1958
Andrew Levane1958-1959
Carl Braun1959-1961
Eddie Donovan1961-1965
Harry Gallatin1965
Dick McGuire1965-1967
Red Holzman1967-1977
Willis Reed1977-1978
Red Holzman (2)1978–1982
Hubie Brown1982-1986
Bob Hill1986-1987
Rick Pitino1987-1989
Stu Jackson1989-1990
John MacLeod1990-1991
Pat Riley1991-1995
Don Nelson1995-1996
Jeff Van Gundy1996-2001
Don Chaney2001-2004
Herb Williams2004
Lenny Wilkens2004-2005
Larry Brown2005-2006
Isiah Thomas2006-2008
Mike D'Antoni2008-2012
Mike Woodson2012-2014
Derek Fisher2014-2016
Kurt Rambis2016
Jeff Hornacek2016-2018
David Fizdale2018-2019
Mike Miller2019-2020
Tom Thibodeau2020-

The most successful coach in the Knicks record book is Red Holzman, who won two NBA championships in 1970 and 1973. Holzman was also named Coach of the Year in 1970. He is also the Knicks' all-time leader in wins with 613 over two stints.

Other notable Knicks coaches include Pat Riley, New York Knicks salaries who led the team to the NBA Finals in 1994, and Jeff Van Gundy, who guided the team to the Eastern Conference Finals in 1999.

The current head coach Tom Thibodeau who replaced Mike Miller in 2020 is in his fourth season with the team.