The Phoenix Suns could only look on Tuesday as the New York Knicks did what they have spent the last several offseasons doing and fired their head coach in Tom Thibodeau. A shocking turn of events given "Thibs" had just led the Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals berth in half a century.
Not only that, but the manner of their six game defeat to the Indiana Pacers definitely felt many feeling like it the first two games in particular could have gone either way. The Suns are obviously no strangers to ditching veteran leading men in Frank Vogel and Mike Budenholzer, but they never came close to the success of Thibodeau in the playoffs.
Firing of Thibodeau could create massive issue late in the day for Suns.
The Suns of course are in the process of hiring their fourth head coach in four seasons, and currently have two remaining individuals standing for the role. Both are assistants with the Cleveland Cavaliers in Johnnie Bryant and Jordan Ott, with some feeling Ott's links to owner Mat Ishbia's alma mater in Michigan State could clinch the role for him.
That may well turn out to be the case - but suddenly the idea of coaching the Knicks is on the table - which could turn the heads of both finalists for the top job in Phoenix. Particularly for Bryant, who has already served as an associate head coach for that franchise for four seasons prior to ending up in Cleveland.
The idea of joining a re-tool of sorts around Booker in Phoenix is interesting, but the Knicks as currently constructed are really close to coming out of the East. They have their own problems to solve this summer - and the Suns could actually help with one of them - but there's no doubt the new leading man could build on Thibodeau's work.
Ott has no previous ties to that franchise, but that doesn't mean his head couldn't be turned either. Another interesting wrinkle here is what would happen if the Knicks decide Chris Quinn is the man for them, and he actually thrives there. Quinn has been an assistant with the Miami Heat for a while now, and was in the running for the Suns' job.
Despite being highly thought of he didn't get the job, and the Knicks could make the Suns look foolish in the future if he somehow ends up there. But much like Phoenix having to wait for Giannis Antetokounmpo to decide his next move before hopefully trading Durant for the right package, this is a distraction they could have done without.
Perhaps had they known Thibodeau was about to become available they would have held off and interviewed him too. Not that they wanted a veteran leading man, that clearly hasn't worked before. But with the Suns' lack of depth and Thibodeau's reputation for short rotations, it might just have been a match made in heaven. We'll never know, but this news comes at a bad time for the Suns.