ESPN Analyst Crushes Knicks Owner James Dolan Over Tom Thibodeau Firing

Andy Nesbitt | Jun 4, 2025

New York Knicks owner James Dolan sits court side during the second quarter against the Atlanta Hawks. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks stunned the sports world on Tuesday when they fired coach Tom Thibodeau just a few days after the team had their season come to an end with a loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The move was such a surprise because Thibodeau had a lot of success during his time with the Knicks, leading them to the playoffs in four of his five years and racking up back-to-back 50-plus win seasons the past two years.

ESPN's Chris "Mad Dog" Russo blamed one man for the move—Knicks owner James Dolan.

"He's a lousy owner, he's been a lousy owner for a long time, he's got an awful reputation," Russo said on First Take. "That's James Dolan. ... Dolan’s hands to me are all over this. Think about it, the Knicks have had 12 head coaches in [Dolan's] tenure as owner of the team. Before Thibs they won one playoff series. One! With Thibs they won five. So this is how they reward Thibs, by throwing him out the door?"

Here are Russo's full comments on the move:

"He's a lousy owner, he's been a lousy owner for a long time, he's got an awful reputation. That's James Dolan...Dolan's hands, to me, he was in the exit meetings, is all over this." Chris Russo on Knicks firing Tom Thibodeau pic.twitter.com/Y9N1Xe7h9G

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 4, 2025

It will be interesting to see who the Knicks hire as their next coach. While we broke down four possible names after Tuesday's news broke, it's clear the next person to hold the job will have some very high expectations.

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