Tom Thibodeau dodged a bullet against the league’s worst team and the last team he coached. But Ryan Saunders, the man who replaced him on the Minnesota bench, didn’t survive the night.
Thibodeau guided the New York Knicks to a narrow 103-99 victory in his first meeting against the Minnesota Timberwolves since his unceremonious exit in 2019. Then moments later, the Timberwolves announced the firing of Saunders.
The Knicks blew a 21-point lead but regained their composure just in time to avoid what could have been a disastrous loss before they welcome back fans, albeit only roughly 2,000, in The Garden on Tuesday against the Golden State Warriors.