Evan Fournier's role diminished from starter to DNP
Knicks guard Evan Fournier controls the ball against the Hornets in the second half of an NBA game at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 26. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
DENVER — It wasn’t long ago that Evan Fournier was being celebrated, a rare highlight for the Knicks in a 2021-22 season gone wrong. He set a franchise record for three-point field goals made, achieving the exact part of the game that the Knicks had hoped for when they signed him in the summer of 2021.
But as he arrived to this season's training camp there was a thought that Quentin Grimes could displace him from the starting lineup because of the second-year player's superior defense. Fournier began the season as the starter but after seven games he lost his starting spot — first to Grimes, and then when Grimes was hurt, to Cam Reddish.
And Tuesday night as the Knicks began a five-game road trip, Fournier got the word from coach Tom Thibodeau that he not only was no longer a starter but was out of the rotation completely. After trying to juggle an 11-man rotation, Thibodeau kept Fournier — and Grimes — on the bench without a second of playing time in a 118-111 win at Utah.
Fournier cheered his teammates on from the bench and after the game took the high road.
“I always try to put myself in other people’s shoes,” Fournier said. “Thibs is trying to find a solution. I don’t think he made that decision because he don’t like me or anything like it’s a personal thing. He just wants to win, man. He does whatever he thinks is best. I can argue whether that’s good or not, sure. People have got to make choices. We have 15 players. [Grimes] didn’t play tonight. So, yeah, you’ve got to make decisions. Sometimes it’s hard.”
Thibodeau explained, “We wanted to see what it would look like and it gave us, I thought, better rhythm. That's why we did it. Just the rhythm of it, you're learning your team. What works best? Are guys able to get in a rhythm? Those are the questions you ask.”
A benching is not an easy thing to accept for any player and maybe harder for someone like Fournier, who is 11 seasons into his career and has been a key component of NBA teams. He has had his ups and downs in New York, playing limited minutes in closing situations early last season and wondering what his role would be.
But on a team desperately in need of three-point shooting Fournier played 80 games and averaged nearly the same minutes as he has through much of his career. He set the franchise record for three-pointers made, shooting a respectable 38.9% from beyond the arc. He averaged 14.1 points, right about at his career average.
Fournier spent the summer with the French National team, was named captain and helped lead them to the Eurobasket final. He shifted to training camp and struggled with his shot (34.4% overall, 33.3% on three-pointers). With the Knicks stumbling Thibodeau decided to cut the rotation down and he was a victim, going from starter to DNP in a span of only13 games.
“It’s not easy. I’ll tell you that,” Fournier said. “There’s not much to say, man, to be honest. Stay ready, stay in shape. I was thinking about being more active on practice days. Yeah, just go back to my Denver days when I was a first and second-year player.
"I mean, that’s the NBA. You always have to be able to prepare for challenges. This game is really mental. You have so many games. You always have to be ready for anything. So I’m going to do the best I can to get ready.”
Thibodeau has stressed when asked about minutes that players must sacrifice and stay ready, that things can change. And that is what Fournier is clinging to now.
“I’ve got to keep that mindset, for sure,” Fournier said. “If I’m thinking about staying on the bench for the rest of the season it’s going to be awful. Mindset is always the same. Do your work every day and live [with] the result.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
