PHOENIX — Their latest reunion skipped the emotions and went right into the brass tacks, in the Tom Thibodeau way.
“Thibs just gave me that look like, ‘Yo, you in shape?’ ” said Taj Gibson, officially signed by the Knicks on Friday to a one-year, nonguaranteed deal. “‘You know I can’t rock with you if you’re not in shape.’”
Gibson affirmed to his coach Friday before the Knicks’ 139-122 win over the Suns that he’s well conditioned — a product of training by himself at the NBPA gym in Manhattan — but Thibodeau couldn’t resist busting chops, telling his 38-year-old center to run sprints with the guards.
“Then he says, ‘I’m joking with you,’” Gibson said. “He knows how to ruffle feathers.”
Gibson and Thibodeau have more than enough history to withstand and contextualize ribbing.
With Gibson on the Knicks roster for Friday night’s game against the Suns, Thibodeau will have guided the Brooklyn product in 10 of his 12 seasons as a head coach.
In their earliest days together with the Bulls, Thibodeau made his frontcourt players sprint with the guards because, according to Gibson, “that’s the best way to stay in shape.”
Gibson would be lapped by the speedy Derrick Rose but that was the point.
“If I could keep two laps behind Derrick, I was good,” he said.
Now it’s different.
Gibson won’t be doing nearly as much running in games, if any.
He was considering retirement before the Knicks re-signed him as insurance following surgery for Mitchell Robinson.
The expectation is he’ll be the third center, at best, behind Jericho Sims and Isaiah Hartenstein.
Perhaps plug other frontcourt holes if they open.
“I’m just here to be supportive. Not trying to take anybody’s shine,” Gibson said. “I’m just here to be a great teammate. If my number is called, I’ll be ready, play hard. Just do what I have to do. That’s why I’m here.”
Gibson, the fourth-oldest active player in the NBA, said he was unsure if he’d get another chance after the Wizards waived him before the season.
He kept training just in case, and the Knicks called Wednesday morning.
His next phase into coaching will have to wait.
“I’m still considering that. But it has to be the right situation,” Gibson said. “I want to be somewhere where I can learn, brighten my future. This is a bright spot for me, being around the coaching staff who I can learn from. … Here I’m so locked into the coaching staff. They basically taught me how to be a pro. It only fits right where I can learn, just fall right into place.”
Gibson is also a natural fit in the locker room.
He’s been teammates with eight players on the roster, including three seasons with RJ Barrett and Julius Randle.
“That’s my vet, OG,” Randle said. “Been battling against him for a long time, teammates with him for a little bit. So it’s good to have him, have his presence.”
Randle said there were a lot of hugs when Gibson arrived in Phoenix, and perhaps Thibodeau gave his favorite player one, too.
After the ribbing.
“I’m sure he did [hug him],” Randle said. “Quietly.”
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