It only took one year for New York Knicks fans to develop a love/hate relationship with Evan Fournier. The Knicks brought in the veteran on a four-year, $73 million contract last summer.
By all accounts, Fournier lived up to his contract. He torched John Starks’ previous Knicks record for most three-pointers hit in a single season. Starks connected on 217 long balls during the 1995 season. Fournier hit 241 in the same amount of games with a better percentage.
Aside from his threat as a long-distance marksman, Fournier also contributed as a playmaker, finishing seventh on New York’s roster with 2.1 assists per game. Defensively, he averaged one takeaway per game.
But despite his positive contributions, Fournier also came with some baggage. His inefficiency was occasionally met with some groans from the Madison Square Garden faithful. During one extended early-season stretch from Nov. 10 to Dec. 14, Fournier only hit 38.7% of his shots from the field.
He also didn’t factor in much on the glass. Although that has never been a focus of Fournier’s perimeter game, he tied for his second-worst rebounding average with just 2.6 boards per game.
Evan Fournier could be a valuable trade piece as the Knicks continue their offseason
Factoring all of this in, Fournier’s first season in New York certainly wasn’t the dud some people were forecasting. He hit some big-time shots and took a load off of RJ Barrett’s shoulders, especially as the season grew on.
However, Fournier’s trade value is high. He’s 29 now and will be 30 next season, and he has a favorable contract for a contending team looking to trade off young talent for counted-on scoring.
With all that in mind, here are five teams who could trade for him during the offseason.