Dice Yoshimoto Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Notes: Coaching Staff, Starting Lineup, Youth, Brown

July 25th, 2025 at 5:03pm CST by Eli Cohen

The Knicks are making some changes on their bench, as new head coach Mike Brown has begun the process of assembling his coaching staff, reports The New York Post’s Stefan Bondy (via Twitter).

According to Bondy, Andy Greer, Dice Yoshimoto, Daniel Brady, and Othella Harrington will not be back with the team for the coming season. Greer had been an assistant with the Knicks since the 2020/21 season, and Yoshimoto had been with the team for three seasons, while last season was the first for Brady and Harrington.

Michael Scotto of HoopsHype adds (via Twitter) that Nick Thibodeau is also departing. Thibodeau was the assistant video coordinator and is the nephew of former head coach Tom Thibodeau.

Brown added player development coach Riccardo Fois to the coaching staff earlier this month, and the Knicks have been granted permission to speak to Timberwolves assistant Pablo Prigioni about a potential role.

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Although the Knicks reached the Eastern Conference Finals this year for the first time since the 1999/2000 season, there is debate about whether they will keep the same starting lineup as last season, writes Kristian Winfield for the New York Daily News. Winfield notes that there’s internal support to keep the same group starting and that Brown has indicated he wants the team to play fast, which would point toward no changes being made. However, Winfield adds that starting Mitchell Robinson would not only help shore up the defense but could also keep him happy as he and the team determine his long-term future in New York. Winfield looks at a variety of potential starting units, including ones that add Robinson, Miles McBride, Guerschon Yabusele, and, as an out-of-left-field proposition, the rangy young wing Pacome Dadiet.
Despite Winfield’s unorthodox suggestion, it will be tough for any of the Knicks’ Summer League players to crack the rotation this season, especially after a not-particularly-noteworthy showing in Las Vegas, opines Peter Botte for the New York Post. Adding Jordan Clarkson and Yabusele to a bench that includes McBride and either Robinson or Josh Hart brings the rotation to nine, and the team has another veteran minimum deal available to fill out the roster. Tyler Kolek would be facing an uphill battle with a plethora of other small guards on the roster, though Botte notes that Ariel Hukporti could find himself looking at minutes if the oft-injured Robinson misses time.
Botte also writes that Brown has a history of not being afraid to hold stars accountable, whether that was Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, or De’Aaron Fox. “I’d be upset if he was just letting me skate through things,” Bryant once said of Brown. “You make mistakes and the coach’s responsibility is to point those out. If he can’t point that out to me, he has no chance of pointing that out to anybody else.” Botte considers that a double-edged sword, as such bluntness can eventually wear on players, but calls it something to monitor during Brown’s time in New York, especially given the duties he’ll be expected to perform as the primary point person for the New York media.

Knicks Add Mike Woodson, Two Others To Coaching Staff

September 4th, 2020 at 9:19am CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 4: The moves are official, the team announced in a tweet.

AUGUST 28: As expected, the Knicks are finalizing a deal for former head coach Mike Woodson to join Tom Thibodeau‘s staff as an assistant coach, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski, the team is also close to hiring Andy Greer and Dice Yoshimoto as assistants.

Woodson was one of 11 candidates to interview with the Knicks earlier in the summer for their head coaching vacancy. He was always considered a long shot for that job, but was cited throughout the process as a likely candidate to join the team’s staff.

Woodson, who also previously served as the head coach of the Hawks, was the lead man on the Knicks’ bench for two-plus seasons from 2012-14. During his time as New York’s head coach, Woodson led the club to a 109-79 (.580) regular season record, making the playoffs twice and winning a series in 2013 — that was the last time the Knicks appeared in the postseason.

As for Greer and Yoshimoto, their inclusions on Thibodeau’s staff have been long-rumored as well. Both men worked with Thibodeau during his previous head coaching tenures in Chicago and Minnesota.

Yoshimoto started as an assistant video coordinator with the Bulls before eventually becoming an assistant with the Timberwolves. Greer has also been part of past coaching staffs for the Knicks, Rockets, Grizzlies, Trail Blazers, and Raptors — he and Thibodeau worked together as assistants in New York from 2001-03.

The Knicks continue to fill out Thibodeau’s staff, having previously hired Kenny Payne away from Kentucky. They also reached an agreement to make Jazz assistant Johnnie Bryant their associate head coach once his playoff run in Utah ends.

Knicks Notes: Woodson, Assistants, Thibodeau, Harkless

July 30th, 2020 at 1:26pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Knicks head coach Mike Woodson, who interviewed for the team’s top coaching position again this time around, is expected to rejoin the organization in some capacity, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

There were rumors during the Knicks’ coaching search that Woodson was a candidate to be hired as an assistant, so Charania’s report doesn’t come as a real surprise. Still, it’s worth noting that on a conference call with reporters on Thursday, Knicks GM Scott Perry said that Thibodeau will have the autonomy to build his own coaching staff, as Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News tweets. Perry added that the staff will be “diverse,” with a focus on player development.

Based on reports to date, it sounds like the support for Woodson has come from within the Knicks organization. If he ends up joining the team’s coaching staff, that should be confirmation that Thibodeau wants him on board as well.

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In addition to Woodson, Mike Miller, Rick Brunson, and Daisuke Yoshimoto are the names that Steve Popper of Newsday keeps hearing as possibilities for Thibodeau’s new coaching staff (Twitter link). Brunson and Yoshimoto both worked under Thibs in Minnesota.
Speaking to reporters today, Thibodeau cited three main reasons why he viewed the Knicks’ job as an attractive one, tweets Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Thibs praised the current roster, referring to it as “young and talented” with “room for growth”; he said he’s excited about the draft assets and cap flexibility the team has at its disposal; and he indicated that the presence of Leon Rose and William Wesley in the front office is also appealing.
Maurice Harkless, an unrestricted free agent this fall, isn’t sure whether or not he’ll be back with the Knicks in 2020/21, but he’s intrigued by the hiring of Thibodeau, calling him a “great coach,” writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Harkless hasn’t played for Thibodeau before, but met him earlier in 2019/20 when the veteran coach visited the Clippers.

Knicks’ Coaching Job Considered Thibodeau’s To Lose?

June 1st, 2020 at 10:44am CST by Luke Adams

After a report last week suggested that Tom Thibodeau topped the Knicks‘ wish list in their head coaching search, multiple updates since then have reiterated that Thibodeau looks like the frontrunner for the job.

Sources tell Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News that Thibodeau is the “heavy favorite” to become the Knicks’ next head coach. Bondy cautions that other candidates – including Mike Miller, Kenny Atkinson, and perhaps even John Calipari – are in play, but says there’s a belief that the position is Thibodeau’s to lose. A source tells The Daily News that Thibodeau is confident enough about his chances that he has already made calls about assembling a staff.

Citing Thibodeau’s longstanding relationship with new Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose, Marc Berman of The New York Post also says there’s an “excellent chance” that the team will zero in on Thibodeau when its head coaching search officially gets underway.

Additionally, Berman hears from sources that members of Thibodeau’s past Bulls and Timberwolves staffs will likely be interested in joining him in New York if he’s hired by the Knicks. Berman specifically cites Andy Greer, Larry Greer, and Dice Yoshimoto as coaches Thibodeau might look to bring with him if given the opportunity.

The Knicks’ search hasn’t begun in earnest yet, but as Berman points out, there’s a good chance that the club won’t part of a resumed NBA season — reports last week indicated that the league favors a 20-team or 22-team restart. If the NBA officially moves forward with a plan that excludes the Knicks, there would be little reason for the franchise to delay its head coaching search until after the resumption of the season.

Timberwolves To Make Sweeping Staff Changes

May 22nd, 2019 at 11:02am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves will be making extensive changes to their coaching staff, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reports.

Every assistant with an expiring contract — Ed Pinckney, Jerry Sichting, Larry Greer, John Lucas III and Dice Yoshimoto — will not return on Ryan Saunders’ staff as the organization distances itself from the Tom Thibodeau era. Saunders had the interim tag removed on Monday. The only assistant with a year left on his contract, Malik Allen, will be retained.

New president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas wants to split up duties more like a football staff. “We’re going to get the best offensive coordinator. We’re going to get the best defensive coordinator. We’re going to get the best player development coordinator,” Rosas said. “They’re going to execute our vision together. And Ryan will manage that program as a whole.”

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Adding players with a defensive mentality is a priority, Krawczynski adds in the same story. The team wants to utilize a more switch-heavy scheme to defend 3-point shooters. “I’ve got to help (Saunders),” Rosas said. “We’ve got to surround our team, our best players with personnel that will be complementary to them and we need more defenders.”
The team’s most notable players, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, attended Saunders’ press conference and gave him ringing endorsements. “I think this is a very positive change,” Wiggins told Michael Rand of the Minneapolis Star Tribune and other media members. “You can see the fresh air, you can see the faces and the positive energy in the air. Everyone is happy for Ryan — you don’t see negative faces, everyone is happy and we’re supportive.”
The decision to retain Saunders was a bow to Towns and his importance to the franchise’s long-term future, Chip Scoggins of the Star Tribune writes. Towns respects and trusts Saunders and feels rejuvenated about the franchise’s direction, Scoggins notes. That’s crucial, because the Timberwolves can’t afford to alienate their best player to the point where an ugly divorce becomes inevitable, Scoggins adds.