The New York Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau was announced as the 2020-21 NBA Coach of the Year on Monday night.
It is the second such honour for Thibodeau, who also was named the league’s top coach during the 2010-11 season with the Chicago Bulls. He is the first coach to win the award in his first season with two separate franchises.
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Phoenix Suns coach Monty Williams received two more first-place votes than Thibodeau (45-43) but lost 351-340 in total points. The 11-point margin was the smallest to separate first and second place since the points format started in 2002-03.
Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder wound up in third place with 161 points and 10 first-place votes.
Coaches earned five points for every first-place vote, three points for every second-place vote and one point for every third-place vote.
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Thibodeau led the Knicks to a 41-31 record, which tied for the fourth-best mark in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks reached the postseason for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign but were eliminated by the Atlanta Hawks in the first round.
The announcement made Thibodeau the third Knicks coach to win the award. He joined Red Holzman (1969-70) and Pat Riley (1992-93).
Courtesy: Sky Sports