Thibodeau Calls Knicks Agreement 'Ridiculous'
(CBS) -- Rumors linking Tom Thibodeau to the Knicks heated up again over the weekend after a New York Daily News report suggested the Bulls head coach already has a deal in place to coach the Knicks next season.
The report was written by Mitch Lawrence, who correctly predicted the Luol Deng trade recently.
Lawrence's story specifically states: "There are rumblings around the Chicago Bulls' offices these days that Tom Thibodeau already has a deal in place to coach the Knicks next season."
Such a deal would be surprising because it would involve tampering, which the story points out, but this isn't the first time Thibodeau has been connected to New York. The head coach's relationship with Bulls management has been well documented and may be as icy as ever after Deng was traded last week.
Still, Thibodeau -- who is in the first year of a four-year contract with the Bulls -- laughed Saturday at the idea that he already has an agreement in place with another team.
"Come on now. Come on," he said. "That stuff is ridiculous. It really is. So, you know, first I was being traded. I could care less about that stuff. I said it before, I love this team, I love the guys that we have. And I love the fighting spirit of this team. So that's all I'm thinking about."
Given Thibodeau's contract situation, the only way he could go to New York would be via trade, and the Knicks don't have any first-round draft picks. That said, trading a head coach isn't unprecedented. Doc Rivers was traded from the Celtics to the Clippers this past offseason.