New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges told the New York Post about a conversation he had with coach Tom Thibodeau during which they discussed the staggering amount of minutes the team's starters have played throughout the season.
When asked about that conversation ahead of the Knicks' overtime win against the Portland Trail Blazers, Thibodeau denied any such discussion with Bridges took place.
The denial of their reported conversation did not sit well with ESPN's Stephen A. Smith––a renowned fan of the Knicks––and he took the opportunity to rip into Thibodeau during Thursday morning's episode of First Take.
"Tom Thibodeau is in trouble. He's in a world of trouble," began Smith, rather dramatically. "I don't give a damn that the New York Knicks are 6–1 in overtime games... Prior to the game, Mikal Bridges revealed he had a private meeting with Tom Thibodeau about the starters playing too many minutes, and the bench playing too little, saying 'sometimes it's not fun on the body.'
"Tom Thibodeau proceeds to play this brother 41 minutes, put the ball in his hands, he delivered the goods and they won the game, which is a good thing. But then, Tom Thibodeau refused to acknowledge that there was a one-on-one conversation. He said it never happened. That's a player that the Knicks sent five picks away for... saying something opposite that the coach is saying, when everybody and their mother knows that Bridges is right."
"Tom Thibodeau is in a world of trouble." 😳 @stephenasmith and @KendrickPerkins on Mikal Bridges' comments about playing too many minutes with the Knicks 👀 pic.twitter.com/lDgmU86woA
— First Take (@FirstTake) March 13, 2025
Smith came to the defense of Bridges, calling him "one of the iron men of the league," but was clearly not pleased that Thibodeau didn't admit to having such a conversation. All five of the Knicks' starters are among the top 25 players league-wide for minutes played per game, with Josh Hart and Bridges leading the league outright.
Whether Thibodeau adjusts his rotations going forward in order to get the bench more involved and give the starters some additional rest remains to be seen, but if Wednesday night's game was any indication, his tendency to lean upon the starting five won't be abandoned any time soon.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Stephen A. Smith Rips Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau Over Mikal Bridges Minutes Situation.
