Tom Thibodeau gets Knicks extension after breakthrough success

The Knicks-Tom Thibodeau relationship has been extended.

The coach and team agreed to add three years to his contract, The Post confirmed, providing Thibodeau an opportunity to build on what is already the most successful tenure on the Knicks sideline in more than two decades.

The new contract will take Thibodeau through the 2027-28 season.

The 66-year-old had just one season remaining on the five-year pact he signed in 2020.

By agreeing to the extension in July, Thibodeau avoided lame-duck status and provided stability to a historically volatile position.

Thibodeau joins Isiah Thomas as just the second head coach to receive an extension under owner James Dolan, who has overseen 12 Knicks head coaches and interims in the past 20 years.

Sources said Thibodeau desired a contract extension before last season after he also had led the Knicks to the Eastern Conference semifinals — losing to the Heat in six games — but the sides never got there.

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His subsequent successful campaign — which included the franchise’s most playoff wins since 2000 — probably boosted Thibodeau’s bank account.

Salaries for NBA head coaches exploded recently, and several received massive deals — including Detroit’s Monty Williams (who was fired after one season), Miami’s Erik Spoelstra, the Clippers’ Ty Lue, Golden State’s Steve Kerr and San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich.

Thibodeau, who guided the Knicks to the playoffs in three of his four seasons (with a 2-3 series record), has been Dolan’s best coaching hire, by far.

He’s already the fifth-winningest in franchise history with a 175-143 mark — below just Red Holzman (613 wins), Joe Lapchick (326), Jeff Van Gundy (248) and Pat Riley (223).

He won Coach of the Year in 2021, and infused an identity built around effort, rebounding, overachievement and defined roles.

The Knicks won 50 games last season despite an avalanche of injuries, with a balanced statistical profile as the NBA’s ninth-rated defense and seventh-rated offense.

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He was a big reason NYC fell in love with the Knicks again.

“You can’t cheat the work, you can’t cheat the culture, you can’t shortcut it,” Kevin Garnett, who played for Thibodeau in Boston, said recently. “I love Thibs because he’s built for what New York is. Thibs also is a great coach in understanding the culture and making those changes. … I think that he is the coach that you want coaching this team.”

Beyond the numbers, there are chemistry reasons to continue Thibodeau’s tenure.

He has achieved the backing and full buy-in from Jalen Brunson, the All-NBA selection who represents the franchise’s best point guard since Clyde Frazier.

That connection was assisted by the presence of Brunson’s father, Rick , a longtime assistant and former player under Thibodeau.

There’s also synergy with team president Leon Rose, who built a roster with personalities and priorities that jibe with Thibodeau’s.

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After Thibodeau butted heads in previous coaching stints with the Chicago front office and Minnesota ownership, there were concerns about his teamwork with executives.

That hasn’t been a problem in New York.

Still, there are potential issues that accompany a Thibodeau extension. He’s close to 70 years old, younger than only Popovich in the head-coaching ranks. His regular-season success (527-389 career record) isn’t matched in the playoffs (38-47).

Despite his own players adamantly refuting it, Thibodeau carries a reputation of overworking the starting lineup.

He’s the reigning back-to-back-to-back winner in the category of “Coach I’d Least Like To Play For” from The Athletic’s annual anonymous player poll.

“It’s bulls–t,” Donte DiVincenzo said about the narrative.

But there are valid questions about the long-term effectiveness of a demanding coach and whether he’s the right candidate to guide an established superstar if the Knicks land one via trade.

That won’t be answered yet, but there’s no question Thibodeau’s coaching has brought the Knicks to a new and exciting level over four years.

And now he has more years on his deal to build on that.

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