The Definitive New York Knicks Roster Breakdown: The Backcourt
By Adam Kester
New York Knicks Backcourt: Evan Fournier
Similar to RJ Barrett, Evan Fournier is in this gray area of being a shooting guard/small forward. At the end of the day, he’s a perimeter player who has far more guard skills than big man skills.
Evan Fournier was the Knicks’ biggest splash of the offseason, signing a 4-year, 73 million dollar contract with a team option on the final year.
What We Know:
While Evan Fournier has been a very solid player for a long time, he’s been out of the spotlight.
After spending seven seasons with the Orlando Magic, Fournier was acquired by the Boston Celtics at last year’s trade deadline, where the team’s injuries didn’t allow them to make the playoff push they had hoped on achieving when they went out and traded for him.
Now with the New York Knicks, Fournier will look to cement himself as a key piece of New York’s rotation. He is locked in as a starter on the wing.
What To Expect
Fournier brings a well-balanced, controlled, confident brand of basketball every time he steps on the court. He may not be the most athletic or flashy player but he will contribute in multiple areas of the game.
He’s taken on some significant scoring responsibilities in his years with the Magic. He’s certainly going to be relied upon as one of the team’s top-scoring options, but he’s going to be one of many initiators on the team.
With the point guard duo of Kemba Walker and Derrick Rose along with the frequent high-post Julius Randle-centric offense, Fournier isn’t going to typically be tasked with bringing the ball up or being the first option for offense.
That doesn’t mean he won’t have opportunities with the ball in his hands — he’ll still get some opportunities to run the pick and roll or get his own buckets — it’s just that the majority of his work, like RJ Barrett, will be to a catch-and-shoot option.
Fournier’s time with the Celtics may not seem like much. His per-game stats dipped, but his efficiency went up.
The gravity that Jayson Tatum had freed Fournier up as a shooter. In his limited time with the Celtics, Fournier shot a whopping 51.9% on catch and shoot threes. I’m not sure people realize how good of a shooter he can be.
He’s going to get plenty of open looks playing off of Walker and Randle this season.
That’s right, the corner three. We saw Reggie Bullock hit a boatload of corner threes coming off of Julius Randle assists last season and there should be zero dropoff with Fournier.
The real upgrade here is when the Knicks need Fournier to create something one-on-one. When opposing teams are doubling Randle or when it’s late in the shot clock and the ball is in Evan Fournier’s hands. The ball isn’t going to die — he can create instant offense.
I don’t expect Fournier’s per-game stats to take some sort of leap. I actually expect them to be slightly lower than his Orlando Magic totals.
Still, his arrival and the upgrade he is over Reggie Bullock has been far too understated. He is going to make opposing defenses pay for leaving him open on the perimeter and for sending their weaker defenders out to guard him.