Tom Thibodeau and the Knicks arrived home for their first game at the Garden in more than two weeks to questions the head coach declined again to answer about his job security.
One day after The Post had asked Thibodeau if he’d received any assurances from the front office about returning next season, Bleacher Report cited sources Wednesday saying he is “expected to remain” the Knicks’ head coach beyond this season.
“I told you yesterday, I don’t worry about any of that stuff,” Thibodeau tersely reiterated before Wednesday’s game against the Trail Blazers.
Thibodeau, who has three years remaining on the five-year contract he signed in July 2020, was only slightly more expansive following Tuesday’s practice, saying, “I don’t worry about any of that stuff. Just coach the team. Coach the team, get ready for the next day. Never have. I know what I put into the job.”
Thibodeau earned NBA Coach of the Year honors last year in leading the Knicks to a 41-31 record and their first playoff berth since 2013 before losing in the first round in five games to the Hawks.
They have slipped back to nearly being mathematically eliminated from a return to the playoffs, however, finishing their 3-4 road trip Sunday in Brooklyn with a 28-40 overall record, leaving them 5 ½ games behind the Hornets for the 10th play-in position in the Eastern Conference with 14 games to play entering Wednesday’s action.
According to Bleacher Report, team owner James Dolan has “granted the front office permission to either [remove] or retain” Thibodeau, citing sources saying team president Leon Rose “has no plans to make any change” despite reports over the All-Star break that team executive William Wesley had been undercutting Thibodeau to Dolan.
The Knicks have underperformed this season after Rose added two new starters in the backcourt, veteran guards Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker. The latter has been shut down for the season. Thibodeau favorite Derrick Rose also has missed the past few months following December ankle surgery. They blew second-half leads on their recent road trip against top teams in stops in Philadelphia, Phoenix, Memphis and Brooklyn.
“Well, I think we’ve played really good basketball since the All-Star break,” Thibodeau said. “And so we’re playing a lot of young guys that are getting valuable experience. And when you look at all these games, we won the three in a row, we lost the Phoenix game on a last possession, go to Memphis and play really well there and then the Brooklyn game was a one possession game.
“So [we are] playing good basketball, we got to continue to improve, just focus on each and every day and put everything you have into the day.”
Portland coach and former Knicks guard Chauncey Billups had the Blazers (26-41) within one game of the No. 10 spot in the West entering the game, despite the absence of All-Star guard Damian Lillard since late December (abdominal surgery) and the trades of CJ McCollum and Norman Powell at last month’s deadline. Billups’ team overcame a 23-point deficit in the second half to defeat the Knicks on Feb. 12 in Portland.
“They got up pretty big on us and we ended up coming back to win the game,” Billups said. “Their physicality really hurt us. They make you play really hard. That’s what they do. That’s what Thibs is all about. They take on his identity.
“When Julius [Randle] has big games, they’re pretty tough to beat. They can be a little bit inconsistent which is what probably hurt this season. But when you come in here you have to execute. They’re not going to lay down at all. We want to experience playing against that.”