The news of Tom Thibodeau being relieved of his head coaching duties came as a great shock to many in the NBA community.
Tom Thibodeau was with the New York Knicks for five years and although he was not able to help them win a championship, his stint brought a lot of joy back to the city of New York.
He had led the franchise to their first Conference Finals appearance in 25 years just a few days before, but the Knicks decided to make the decision due to a few reasons.
The only coaches to have held their roles longer than him currently in the NBA are Steve Kerr and Erik Spoelstra.
Both Kerr and Spoelstra have been spearheading the Golden State Warriors and the Miami Heat respectively for well over a decade.
However, there have been other great names that have had longer tenures with teams in the NBA.
Five longest serving head coaches in NBA historyRen Holzman [New York Knicks: 1967-1982]
Holzman coached the Knicks for 15 seasons and helped them get their only two NBA championships in 1970 and 1973.
His career as a coach started with the Rochester Royals, but he later became a scout before being roped in by the Knicks as a coach.
During his time with the Knicks, Holzman won the Coach of the Year award once and the team retired jersey 613- the number of wins he had as a coach with the team- to honour the success he had with them.
Erik Spoelstra [Miami Heat: 2008- Still coaching]
Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
Spoelstra is currently the longest serving coach in the NBA as he has been with the Heat for 17 seasons now.
The 54-year-old worked his way up from being a video coordinator to becoming a championship winning coach with the franchise.
He led them to two consecutive championships in 2013 and 2014, but has also been doing a great job in the last few years, helping the franchise compete despite the lack of stars on the team.
Erik Spoelstra started out as a video coordinator with the Heat in 1995. 28 seasons later in Miami:
-812 career wins
-3x champion (two as HC)
-7x East titles & NBA Finals appearances
Job’s not finished for Coach Spo 🐐 pic.twitter.com/B1DIQlTMmw
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 30, 2023
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In the last five years, Heat have made multiple trips to the NBA Finals and although they have fallen short a lot of credit needs to go to Spoelstra.
Red Auerbach [Boston Celtics: 1950-1966]
Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images
Auerbach is the second most successful coach in NBA history with nine championships.
All his wins came with the Boston Celtics as he led them to an era of dominance in the NBA.
He won the Coach of the Year award in 1965 and retired from coaching the following year.
However, his contributions to the Celtics continued as he served as their general manager helping them win seven more championships.
After a glorious career, Auerbach was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1969.
Jerry Sloan [Utah Jazz: 1988-2011]
Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images
Sloan had a stellar playing career with the Chicago Bulls, receiving two All-Star and multiple All-Defensive Team selections.
His jersey number four was retired by the franchise and he also went on to coach them for three years before moving to the Utah Jazz, where he was for 23 seasons.
Sloan led the team to two NBA Finals, but faced defeat against his former side – the Bulls on both occasions.
RIP JERRY SLOAN
2 x All-Star as a player & Hall of Fame coach who was willing to get in the face of any player including Kenyon Martin & Jerry Stackhouse!
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) May 22, 2020
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He helped create the monstrous duo of John Stockton and Karl Malone, but despite their best efforts the Jazz were not able to get over the hurdle.
Sloan’s coaching stint ended in 2011 and he retired with 1223 combined regular and postseason wins.
The team honoured him by raising the 1223 banner to the rafters.
Gregg Popovich [San Antonio Spurs: 1996-2025]
Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images
Gregg Popovich’s historic stint as the San Antonio Spurs head coach ended after this season.
He announced that he would step down from the coaching role, but stay with the team as the president of basketball operations.
Popovich’s 29 seasons as the head coach resulted in five championships and brought multiple Hall of Fame players to the franchise.
29 seasons.
5 championships.
1,422 wins, the most of all-time.
Congrats on an incredible coaching career and good luck with your next chapter, Gregg Popovich!pic.twitter.com/sa1tV5xfnX
— NBA (@NBA) May 2, 2025
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His elite mentality and man management helped nurture young stars and although many often criticise him, what Popovich did in San Antonio will always remain special.
He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2023 for his contributions to the game, but as a president of the Spurs, Popovich still plays a major role and could help make a special team with Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox.