Knicks playoff run disproving this Tom Thibodeau label

The reputation is one thing.The reality is another.The Knicks don’t care about the former.

They’re benefitting from the latter.A narrative that coach Tom Thibodeau is stubborn, stuck in his ways with a “my way or the highway” mentality and hesitant to make needed adjustments has hovered over him throughout his career.But his current players see the opposite.“I think once you have a label, it’s hard to shed that label,” Josh Hart said after practice Monday.

“This whole, I don’t want to call it a run because it’s two series, but those two series [against the Pistons and Celtics], he showed that he’s willing to adapt, he’s willing to change, he’s willing to do different things than he’s used to.Obviously, that’s a willingness on his end, the trust and belief in his players.“Everyone gave him a label and they just ran with that label for the last 10, 15 years.

But I think the last two series showed his ability to adapt and change when necessary.”How specifically has Thibodeau changed or adapted?“Obviously, a huge thing was the switching part,” Hart said, referencing Thibodeau’s decision to have the Knicks switch on nearly all screens against the Celtics after playing drop coverage the majority of their four regular-season matchups.“That’s one.

I don’t want to say too many more.We can’t show some of our cards.

He put the ball in Mikal [Bridges’] hands when he’s going.Or when guys are hot, leaving them in or making those tough decisions on rotations.

You got to give him a lot of credit, because he’s given us a great game plan, making sure we’re prepared.He deserves a lot of credit.”All year, the Knicks have rejected the notion that they are not as tough as last year’s team, instead saying that they are simply different with new strengths and weaknesses.

Turns out, that applies to Thibodeau as well.There were concerning moments in the regular season, but Thibodeau has maximized those new strengths to bring ...