NEW YORK -- There are few people in the NBA today who know what it's like, and what it means, to truly make Madison Square Garden shake.
Tom Thibodeau, however, is one of them.
In 1999, Thibodeau was an assistant on Jeff Van Gundy's coaching staff with the Knicks when Larry Johnson converted his legendary 4-point play that helped send that year's eighth seed on its improbable run to the NBA Finals. These days, it is Thibodeau himself who is patrolling the sidelines here. And, when asked ahead of the opening game of New York's first-round playoff series against the Atlanta Hawks tipped off Sunday night, Thibodeau -- not exactly the sentimental type -- didn't take long to single out that moment as his favorite MSG memory.