Karl-Anthony Towns

Knicks’ Thibodeau Gripes About Officiating After Pistons’ First Playoff Win Since 2008

April 22nd, 2025 at 10:24am CST by Luke Adams

The Pistons won a playoff game on Monday for the first time since May 2008, writes Chris Herring of ESPN, hanging onto a fourth-quarter lead in Madison Square Garden to defeat the Knicks by a score of 100-94 and even up their first-round series at one game apiece.

Detroit made just 44.6% of its field goal attempts, including only six shots from beyond the arc, but won the game with strong defense and free throw shooting. The Pistons went 28-of-34 from the foul line, compared to 16-of-19 for New York, prompting Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau to speak after the loss about how the game was called.

“Huge discrepancy in free throws. Huge,” Thibodeau said. “I don’t understand how, on one side, there are direct line drives with contact that just aren’t being called. Look, I really don’t give a crap how they call the game as long as it’s consistent on both sides. But if (Cade) Cunningham‘s driving, and there’s marginal contact that gets him to the line, then Jalen (Brunson) should be getting to the line.”

By the end of the game, Brunson had gone to the free throw line 11 times – compared to 12 for Cunningham – and Ausar Thompson, the primary defender on the Knicks’ point guard had fouled out. However, as Madeline Kenney of The New York Post observes, the Knicks didn’t shoot a free throw until the second quarter and took 11 of their 19 tries during the fourth quarter.

Despite the complaints from Thibodeau and the MSG faithful, who booed and chanted derisively at the referees throughout the game, Brunson said after scoring 37 points that the officiating wasn’t the reason why the Knicks lost.

“Regardless if fouls are being called or not called, we’ve got to adjust and I feel like we did that a little too late into the game,” he said, per Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press. “And so regardless of how it’s reffed, we’ve got to adjust and we’ve got to adapt to that and go on from there.”

Here are a few more Knicks-related notes from Monday’s loss:

Given the price the Knicks paid to acquire him last summer, Mikal Bridges will find himself under a bright spotlight this spring. As Stefan Bondy of The New York Post writes in a subscriber-only article, Bridges is off to a slow start in the postseason — after sitting out most of the fourth quarter during Saturday’s Game 1 comeback, he went 0-of-4 from the field in the final four minutes of Monday’s loss, including missing a game-tying three-point attempt with 12 seconds left.
Bridges wasn’t the only Knicks wing who struggled in Game 2. After a huge Game 1 performance, OG Anunoby scored just 10 points and went 0-for-4 on three-point shots in Game 2, Kenney writes for The New York Post. Anunoby also wasn’t as effective as he was in Game 1 at slowing down Cunningham, who scored 33 points on Monday. “They were running stuff to get me off of his body,” Anunobdy said of the Pistons’ Game 2 strategy. “Setting screens to get me off of him, doing stuff like that. They made some adjustments, we’re gonna make some adjustments ourselves.”
The Knicks will likely need more from Karl-Anthony Towns offensively in order to bounce back in the series, writes Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. The big man scored just 10 points, tied for his second-lowest mark of 2024/25, and didn’t attempt a shot in the fourth quarter of Game 2, though Thibodeau said he didn’t have a problem with that. “(Towns) was getting touches, but he’s making the right play,” the Knicks’ coach said. “If he’s getting double-teamed, I don’t want him just shooting the ball over three people. That makes no sense to me.”
Thibodeau was more concerned about the Knicks’ issues on the glass. Despite missing injured big man Isaiah Stewart, the Pistons out-rebounded New York by a 48-34 margin, with 12 of those Detroit boards coming on the offensive end. “The rebounding was problematic the whole night, so that’s probably the whole game,” Thibodeau said, according to Kenney and Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Towns added that the Knicks need to match the Pistons’ intensity for “50/50 basketballs.”

Knicks Notes: Hart, Anunoby, Thompson, Brunson, Towns

April 21st, 2025 at 1:51pm CST by Rory Maher

Josh Hart was largely a non-factor in the first half of Game 1 of the Knicks‘ first-round series vs. Detroit due to early foul trouble, but he played a major role in New York’s second-half comeback, including a 21-0 run that sealed the victory, writes Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. Hart went scoreless, missing his two field goal attempts, in seven first-half minutes, but he went 6-of-8 after intermission, finishing with 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists in 30 minutes — the Knicks outscored the Pistons by 20 during his time on the court.

“I think it’s just trying to stay ready,” Hart said Sunday. “I think growing up, I was always taught to play the game until the last whistle. At Villanova, Coach [Jay] Wright really got that instilled in us that you can’t control everything, you’ve gotta let stuff go, but you’ve gotta continue to push, continue to fight until the last whistle. For me, that’s just how I’m wired. You can box me out for 46 minutes, but if it’s not a habit, those last two minutes of a game is where I’m gonna make an impact or get an offensive rebound or get a loose ball or something like that.

“Obviously the foul trouble was frustrating. I was yelling at [head coach Tom Thibodeau] to keep me in but obviously I was doing idiotic fouls. Thibs is always making sure you’re staying ready and locked into the game.”

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As Chris Herring details for ESPN.com, Hart is one of the top rebounders in NBA history for his size, is known for his tenacity and hustle, is a skilled secondary play-maker, and shot a career-best 61.8% on twos during the 2024/25 season. Still, while Hart’s all-around contributions are undoubtedly valuable, the Knicks’ playoff hopes may hinge on how he fares from behind the arc — rival teams dare him to shoot, and his three-point percentages tend to fluctuate wildly. He has converted 34.2% of his career triples, including 33.3% in ’24/25.
If OG Anunoby continues to play like he did in Game 1, the Knicks have a real shot at making a deep playoff run, contends Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post (subscriber link). Anunoby, 27, re-signed with New York in free agency last offseason, inking a massive five-year, $212.5MM contract. The defensive stalwart recorded 23 points, seven rebounds, five steals and two blocks in 44 minutes in the opening contest.
Pistons second-year wing Ausar Thompson said “nothing” came to mind when asked to name the most difficult challenge of defending Jalen Brunson, but later said the star guard was good at “selling” fouls, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required). Known for his excellent defense, Thompson committed five fouls in 23 minutes in Game 1.
Karl-Anthony Towns could become a franchise legend if the team has an impressive playoff showing, Vaccaro writes in another subscriber-only column. Towns is off to a good start after shining in his Knicks postseason debut, but he will have to continue to thrive on both ends for New York to have a chance at representing the East in the NBA Finals.

Knicks Notes: Payne, Brunson, Towns, Robinson

April 20th, 2025 at 10:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Tom Thibodeau‘s decision to expand his rotation to nine players paid off Saturday as Cameron Payne came off the bench to spark a comeback victory over Detroit, writes Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. Payne scored 11 points in the fourth quarter as the Knicks put together a blistering 21-0 run to pull out their playoff series opener.

“The thing about him, he knows exactly who he is,” Thibodeau said. “He comes in with great energy every game, carries himself well each and every day. He gave us a huge spark, that’s been who he is.”

Schwartz points out that Payne has more postseason experience than anyone else on New York’s roster, apart from P.J. Tucker, who didn’t play in Game 1. Saturday was Payne’s 59th playoff game in his 10-year career, and Schwartz notes that he brings a mixture of veteran savvy and youthful energy.

“I (am one of) the oldest guys on the team, so having somebody into the game, it’s a different kind of experience, especially for the rookies,” Payne said. “We’re in the NBA, sometimes people have the chill (mindset), just chilling. I’m happy to be in the league, I enjoy it, so I try to just have fun every single night. I could be doing something else, but I’m playing in the Garden. I gotta have fun. I just try my best to bring my energy and it’s infectious. Everybody feeds off it. That’s a good feeling.”

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Thibodeau joked that Jalen Brunson “got his cape” when he went to the locker room prior to the start of the fourth quarter, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. The star guard actually changed his shoes before delivering 12 points and three assists in the final nine minutes. That came after he missed 11 of his first 13 shots and struggled to find space to operate against an aggressive Detroit defense. “He’s a warrior. He’s going to battle for us,” Josh Hart said. “Obviously he’s playing through the ankle (pain). Can’t say enough about his toughness, his grit. Fourth quarter, end of the game, obviously he made plays for us.”
Karl-Anthony Towns had a memorable performance in his first playoff game with the Knicks, observes Madeline Kenney of The New York Post. Towns filled up the stat sheet with 23 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, four steals and two blocks in 39 minutes. “There’s no doubt about it: What (Towns) can do offensively changes what you do defensively,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He has that impact on both sides of the ball.”
Thibodeau experimented with a double-big lineup on Saturday, using Towns alongside Mitchell Robinson for a while in the first half, per Zach Braziller and Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. Robinson was limited to 17 regular season games while recovering from left ankle surgery, but he gives the Knicks flexibility to try different looks in the playoffs. “The size, I think, is good,” Thibodeau said. “I thought Mitch during that stretch made some really good defensive plays, in the fourth, too. The steal that he had, the game was pretty tight, and that was a big play. He makes plays like that. That helps inspire the team, ignite the team. Those are great hustle plays, so defensively, I think he was very good.”

Atlantic Notes: Ujiri, Rajakovic, Raptors, Sixers’ Trio, Knicks Bigs

April 17th, 2025 at 10:03pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Raptors‘ front office, led by president Masai Ujiri, is determined to get the team back into championship contention, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca writes. In his end-of-season news conference, Ujiri expressed that he wasn’t able to enjoy Toronto’s championship in 2019 as much as he would’ve liked and that all he thinks about is getting his team back to that spot.

“[Our goal] is getting better and adding more players and building this team and growing to be a championship team,” Ujiri said. “A championship is the end goal of all of this, and when that comes, we don’t know, but we have to identify those players and build with those kinds of players.”

The Raptors took a big swing by acquiring Brandon Ingram at the deadline and giving him a multiyear extension before he played a game for the team.

“At the end of the day, you have to acquire talent,” Ujiri said. “We have to do it in a unique way in the market that we’re in and we’ve got to jump on opportunities that come our way, sometimes after we really study them.”

Ujiri’s comments this week represented a departure from the ones he made a year ago, when he expressed a willingness to embark on a multiyear rebuild, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes. Toronto did maximize its draft talent this year, with rookies Ja’Kobe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead and Jamison Battle all stepping up and playing big roles.

“I was really happy with the way these guys played and hopefully their development comes up more and more,” Ujiri said. “Yeah, we tried to attack the odds in the lottery and see what we can do. It’s a good draft. And honestly, wherever we fall, we feel very confident. Our guys have done a lot of work all year. We’re extremely excited.”

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The pressure to win has been relatively low in Toronto with the team acquiring and developing so many young players, Grange writes in another piece. But with the Raptors‘ focus shifting toward winning, head coach Darko Rajakovic is ready for the team’s next phase and has the full buy-in of his players. “He’s a really good coach. He cares about us. He really does,” RJ Barrett said. “He comes in and he challenges us every single day. And it’s nice when you know that you have somebody that cares about you — makes you want to play even harder for them. Darko’s a guy you can have conversations with about anything, and he’s very helpful. Always teaching, but he listens to us and our ideas. Yeah. So, like, that stuff is great.”
Sixers wing Paul George wants the team’s big three – himself, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid – to spend more time together this offseason, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I think that’s very important,” George said. “We’ve already talked about seeing each other, where we’re going to be this summer. So we’ve already had those conversations about connecting once the season’s over. I think it’s very important. I don’t think it’s healthy to go two, three months before seeing each other, regardless of if we’re checking in over the phone. It’s just different seeing each other.“
The Knicks might turn to two-big lineups in the playoffs against the Pistons, Peter Botte of the New York Post writes. Mitchell Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns only played 47 minutes together this season, but that two-man grouping outscored opponents by 9.2 points per 100 possessions. Head coach Tom Thibodeau said that despite the small sample size, he liked what he saw from that pairing.

Knicks Notes: Rotation, McBride, Robinson, Towns, Bridges, Brunson, Toughness

April 15th, 2025 at 9:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

How low will coach Tom Thibodeau go? In this instance, we’re talking about his rotation.

Thibodeau sliced his rotation to eight players in last year’s playoffs, then cut it to seven when injuries struck. The New York Post’s Stefan Bondy anticipates that Thibodeau will rely heavily on his starting unit once again in the opening-round series against Detroit.

Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson appear to be the only locks to get steady playing time off the bench. Landry Shamet, Cameron Payne and Precious Achiuwa are the other reserves who could be called upon but it’s likely only one will get rotation minutes, according to Bondy, who recommends that the hot-shooting Shamet should be the choice.

Here’s more Knicks news:

It’ll be the first postseason with the Knicks for Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, the front office’s two major acquisitions to become a championship-level team. The pressure will be on that duo to produce, Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post opines. “I think for me and Mikal, we just wanted to show our value to the team,” Towns said. “And I think that throughout the year, we’ve had the opportunity to do that, to our fans and our teammates and our coaching staff.”
Jalen Brunson, who returned from an ankle injury this month to play four games, says that past playoff experiences will help the club navigate this postseason, Peter Botte of the New York Post writes. “I think for us, it’s, like any other season, it’s a roller coaster every year, there’s gonna be ups and downs, and it’s all about how you manage it,” Brunson said. “But now that the regular season’s over, it’s all about how we can move on and be better the next day. I know it’s a term that people don’t like to hear, but we learn from what we did in the past, good and bad, and move on and get better. That’s the name of the game at this stage of the season. … So we’re just focused. We still got a long way to go with preparation, still got a long way to go making sure we’re ready to go for Saturday. We’ll be ready.”
The talent is there but are the Knicks tough enough to make it past the physical Pistons and other potential opponents? Newsday’s Steve Popper explores that topic in a subscriber-only story.

Knicks Notes: Tucker, Achiuwa, Bridges, Playoffs

April 11th, 2025 at 1:17pm CST by Rory Maher

Veteran forward P.J. Tucker had only made one brief appearance for the Knicks this season heading into Thursday’s game in Detroit. However, with OG Anunoby and Josh Hart held for rest, he was surprisingly the first player off the bench last night, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post.

Tucker received a heads-up that he’d be in the rotation on Thursday, but he wasn’t sure how much he’d play. He wound up logging 27 minutes, the most playing time he’s received in a regular season game in two years.

“Once I got through my first wind, it was really good,” said Tucker, who finished with three points and six rebounds. “I started to open up a little bit. I started to feel good, started talking, getting involved with the game and it’s like riding a bike.”

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While Tucker was happy to be playing again, he was not pleased with the loss to the Pistons, who could be New York’s opponent in the first round of the playoffs. “They just out-toughed us. They did. The whole fourth quarter,” Tucker said (story via Bondy). “We kept it close but they just out-toughed us. That’s something we got to address. Obviously, not having OG [Anunoby], not having Josh [Hart], getting those guys back will help a lot. I just feel like down in the trenches like that in the playoffs this year, they’re not calling nothing. They’re letting a lot of stuff go right now and I like it. The refs are letting a lot of stuff go both ways. With that happening, guys got to play differently. We got to play different. We got to toughen up. It’s more physical. We got to toughen up.”
In a mailbag for The Athletic, James L. Edwards III answers questions about the Knicks’ playoff chances, the results of the Karl-Anthony Towns trade, and more. One question is focused on the future of Precious Achiuwa, who will be an unrestricted free agent again this summer after re-signing with New York on a one-year deal. Edwards believes another reunion between the two sides is unlikely.
Iron man Mikal Bridges has yet to miss a game in his NBA career. In fact, he hasn’t sat out a game since he was in high school, Bondy writes for The New York Post. The 28-year-old is on the verge of playing all 82 regular season games in 2024/25.
In a subscriber-only story, Bondy lists which members of the Knicks have the most at stake entering the playoffs. Bridges and head coach Tom Thibodeau are likely feeling the most heat, according to Bondy. Bridges will be eligible for an extension this offseason.

Knicks Notes: Tucker, Roster, Shamet, Wright, Robinson, Towns

April 1st, 2025 at 8:41pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks added P.J. Tucker on a standard two-year contract but they could still add another player to the 15-man roster within the next couple weeks, Ian Begley of SNY TV tweets.

There’s enough wiggle room under the second apron to add another veteran free agent on a minimum deal before the end of the regular season. However, the team would need to waive a player in order to create room on the roster to sign another free agent.

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Delon Wright and Landry Shamet are getting steady minutes with Jalen Brunson, Miles McBride and Cameron Payne on the mend. Wright, a defensive stopper, and Shamet, an offensive threat, could still play roles as the backcourt gets healthier, Andrew Crane of the New York Post writes. Wright started his third consecutive game on Tuesday against Philadelphia, while Shamet has delivered double-digit scoring off the bench in three of the last four games. Coach Tom Thibodeau appreciates Wright’s defensive prowess. “He’s got great size at his position,” Thibodeau said. “That’s his gift, is his defense, and he gets a lot of deflections.” Both players are on expiring contracts.
The return of Mitchell Robinson from ankle and foot injuries has impacted the defense, according to Begley and Robinson’s teammates. The team had the sixth-best defensive rating in March, its best ranking in any month this season. “The last month and a half, he’s been a monster defensively,” Josh Hart said. “Blowing up screens, blowing up handoffs, like a free safety on that backside.”
Robinson got a chance to start on Tuesday as Karl-Anthony Towns was ruled out due to a knee injury, Fred Katz of The Athletic tweets. Towns has appeared in 67 of 75 games.

Knicks Notes: Towns, Hart, Robinson, McCullar, McBride

March 26th, 2025 at 7:10pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Knicks wing Josh Hart and All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns both logged triple-doubles during a historic performance against the reeling Mavericks on Tuesday night, writes Chris Herring of ESPN. Hart and Towns became the first New York players to simultaneously achieve the feat, Herring writes.

In the 128-113 win, Towns racked up 26 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. Hart, meanwhile, had 16 points, 12 boards, and 11 dimes. Herring reports that this marked just the 17th time ever that two NBA teammates secured triple-doubles in the same game.

It was also Hart’s ninth triple-double of the 2024/25 season, besting Hall of Famer Walt Frazier‘s previous single-season Knicks record of eight in 1968/69. This is Towns’ first triple double of the year.

“I didn’t envision this,” Hart said. “This is more than I ever dreamed of.”

“[Hart’s] got nine this season; I’ve got one,” Towns remarked. “But the way he does it is special. It’s always with effort and for the betterment of the team. I’m just happy there’s a way to see on the stat sheet the impact he’s having on the game. He sacrifices so much for the team, so I’m happy that he can have this moment.”

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The Knicks’ big man tandem of Towns and Mitchell Robinson is considered to be “a work in progress” even by head coach Tom Thibodeau, although metrics indicate that the dynamic duo is yielding strong early returns, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscriber link). Robinson has played just 10 games this season due to injury.
Knicks rookie wing Kevin McCullar Jr. made his NBA debut during Tuesday’s Dallas clash, and scored the first two points of his career during his three minutes of action, Bondy notes in another New York Post article. For McCullar’s achievement, Hart awarded the young guard the game ball. McCullar had spent roughly a full year recovering from a knee injury. “It’s been rough, but I kept my head on straight,” McCullar said. “Adversity makes you who you are and everybody goes through it in different ways of life… Growing up, that’s all I’ve known is playing basketball.”
Knicks reserve guard Miles McBride is out for a third straight game on Wednesday vs. the Clippers with a left groin strain, per Newsday’s Steve Popper (Twitter link). Robinson, who continues to sit out one game in back-to-back sets, is active on Wednesday after sitting out Tuesday’s contest against Dallas. According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (via Twitter), Thibodeau told reporters today that McBride was “limited” during the team’s latest practice.

Knicks Notes: Robinson, Towns, Brunson, Hart

March 19th, 2025 at 3:59pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks have been bringing along Mitchell Robinson slowly since he returned last month following his recovery from offseason ankle surgery. Entering play on Monday, Robinson had yet to be on the court for more than 19 minutes in any of his first seven outings this season.

However, as Mark W. Sanchez of The New York Post details, Robinson saw an uptick in his playing time in Monday’s victory over Miami. His 10 points, nine rebounds, two steals, and 24 minutes all represented season highs, and he said after the game that he’s “getting the rhythm back a little bit.”

“I think the rim protection,” head coach Tom Thibodeau said when asked about the positive signs he’s seeing from Robinson. “His ability to get out on the perimeter, defend pick-and-rolls, challenge shots, cover a lot of ground and make a second or third effort to be up on a pick-and-roll and still get back to rebound and change shots. You’re seeing more and more multiple-effort plays from him. I think his timing is coming around. He’s moving great. He feels great.”

The Knicks’ two centers, Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns, had played just nine minutes together in Robinson’s first seven games back, but shared the court for 10 minutes against the Heat. Thibodeau liked what he saw from the twin-towers look.

“When you have two seven-footers out there, if you get by one, you’ve got another waiting at the rim,” Thibodeau said. “I think that has a huge impact on the game.”

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In an interview with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Knicks teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart spoke about a wide range of topics, including how Brunson has adjusted to being the “face of the franchise” in New York, why Hart is having a career year, and how Thibodeau compares to their former Villanova coach Jay Wright.
Fred Katz of The Athletic takes a look at how the Knicks are attempting to “steal points” in transition as they play without Brunson, the organizer of their half-court offense, who remains sidelined due to a sprained ankle.
After cameras captured them shouting at one another during a timeout in Golden State on Saturday (Twitter video link), Hart and Thibodeau both downplayed their sideline disagreement, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. “You’re not going to find a more loyal player. I love Thibs. I think that was just my frustration coming out with the flow of the game, my own individual performance,” Hart said. “… It doesn’t affect our relationship. It doesn’t show anything of what’s going on. It’s just two extremely competitive people in a fiery moment. I love Thibs. I love what he’s doing. And he’s putting us in the best position to be successful.”
In case you missed it, Knicks owner James Dolan made some rare public comments about the team last week, indicating that he plans for the current core to “be together for a while.”

Dolan: Knicks’ Core ‘Going To Be Together For A While’

March 16th, 2025 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks‘ leaders at the management and ownership levels rarely speak to the media about the team, but owner James Dolan made an exception this week for a pair of podcast hosts within his organization, appearing on the Roommates Show, hosted by Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart (YouTube link).

As Stefan Bondy of The New York Post relays, Dolan expressed a willingness to be patient with the current Knicks core, making it clear that he believes continuity will be an important factor in maximizing the upside of the roster.

“We have a team that’s going to be together for a while,” Dolan said. “(President of basketball operations) Leon (Rose) has done a good job of lining up the contracts and everything else. So this isn’t our only season. We’re going to play a bunch of seasons together.

“You take a look at teams like Boston that have played together, they get to draw off of something that they built over that period of time. And for this team, that’s the challenge, really – today, going into the playoffs, etc. – is to build that inside of the team. Something we can draw on.”

The Knicks made significant changes to their roster during the 2024 offseason, sending a package heavy on future first-round picks to Brooklyn in exchange for Mikal Bridges, then completing a blockbuster deal in the fall to acquire Karl-Anthony Towns in exchange for a package headlined by Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo.

Entering the summer of 2025, Towns, Brunson, Hart, and OG Anunoby are all locked up for multiple seasons, and there’s hope that Bridges will sign an extension that pushes his current contract beyond its 2026 expiration date. Sizable contracts for those players will likely leave the organization operating in apron territory for the next few years, reducing New York’s ability to continue making significant major in free agency or on the trade market.

After advancing to the second round of the playoffs in each of the past two years, it will be a challenge for the Knicks to get any further than that this spring, given that it would likely mean upsetting the defending champion Celtics. However, Dolan expressed optimism about the group’s future, lauding Rose for the way he has put the roster together and indicating that the front office has his full support, along with full autonomy to continue making personnel decisions.

As Bondy notes, Dolan also admitted that the patient, hands-off approach he’s taking now hasn’t always been the management style he’s employed in the past.

“There were times when (we’ve) sort of reached for that shiny, sparkly object. ‘Maybe this is what we need.’ Especially when things weren’t going well,” he said. “‘Let’s bring in this guy and maybe he’ll turn it all around for us.’ Sometimes it’s players, sometimes it’s a coach.

“What I learned over time is that doesn’t work. It really doesn’t. You really have to do the fundamentals, the basics. You’ve got to build a team, you’ve got to build an organization. There is no waving a wand over a team and all of a sudden make it a great team. It doesn’t happen.”

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