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[Saba Sports News] One of the biggest criticisms of New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau—his heavy reliance on starters—has surfaced once again.
Knicks forward Mikal Bridges admitted that he asked Thibodeau to ease up on his minutes, not just for his own benefit but to give the bench more opportunities.
“Sometimes it’s not fun on the body,” Bridges said, via The New York Post’s Stefan Bondy.
“You’ll want that as a coach, but I also talked to him a little bit knowing that we’ve got a good enough team where our bench guys can come in and we don’t need to play 48 (minutes), 47. We’ve got a lot of good guys on this team that can take away minutes, which helps the defense, helps the offense, helps tired bodies being out there and giving up all these points. It helps just keeping fresh bodies out there.”
Bridges noted that Thibodeau didn’t push back too hard but acknowledged that the veteran coach “gets in his ways” when it comes to playing his starters heavy minutes.
Thibodeau has long been criticized for overworking his top players, with concerns that his demanding style could lead to injuries and fatigue by the playoffs. Bridges’ comments seem to reinforce those concerns, especially given his reputation as one of the most durable players in the league.
This season, Bridges is averaging a career-high 37.8 minutes per game, while all five Knicks starters play at least 35 minutes per night. Though the team has largely avoided serious injuries, there have been some close calls that have reignited discussions about Thibodeau’s approach.
Now in his first season with the Knicks, Bridges may still be adjusting to the workload. Entering Wednesday’s action, he is averaging 17.2 points per game while embracing a key role in New York’s rotation.