Renck & File: In championship-or-bust mode, Knicks should hire ex-Nuggets coach Michael Malone ...Middle East

The Post Malone Nuggets rocked, given the context.

But does that mean that Michael Malone can’t coach? Hardly.

He won more games with the Nuggets over 10 years than anyone in franchise history. He served as the stern father, nurturing the development of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. His abrasive style eventually wore thin — the kids were grown up with kids of their own and no longer needed browbeating and grievances aired in press conferences.

But with a fresh start and lessons learned — ditch the paranoia, stay out of office power struggles — there is no better free agent.

Would it be weird in New York? Sort of. The same complaints about Tom Thibodeau have dogged Malone. He plays his starters too much, including in routs, and is slow to trust his bench. But Malone brings an edge and competitiveness that translates to players, and he is adept at dealing with the media.

Like Malone, Tom Thibodeau deserved better. He inherited a red-faced franchise, took it to the playoffs four times in five years, and received a pink slip. The Knicks reached the Eastern Conference Finals before the Pacers eliminated them.

Whether because of friction created by assistant coach Rick Brunson, star player Jalen Brunson’s dad, or team president Leon Rose believing he could not push this team across the finish line, Thibodeau was canned.

The Knicks are in championship-or-bust mode, operating like the Yankees overnight. And for all the similarities between Thibodeau and Malone, there is one huge difference: Malone has a ring. He led the Nuggets to their only title two years ago.

Could he do it again, returning to his eastern roots as a high school graduate of Seton Hall Prep in West Orange, N.J.? Unlikely. But leading the team to the Finals is not an unreasonable request.

Rose had to have someone in mind before making the unpopular decision to fire Thibs. He is expected to interview Mavericks coach Jason Kidd. But no one is more qualified to lead the Knicks than someone who was a former New York assistant. Malone’s career, post-Nuggets, should resume in The Garden.

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