New York Knicks fans were left severely disappointed on the first day of training camp after Tom Thibodeau said that Evan Fournier was the “frontrunner” to start. Soon after that, it was revealed that Quentin Grimes was in a walking boot and was considered day-to-day with a sore left foot.
Grimes has sat out for New York’s first three preseason games, but he practiced in full on Sunday and Monday, although he didn’t do everything at the team’s practice on Tuesday. There’s hope that he’ll be available for the Knicks’ final preseason game against the Washington Wizards on Friday night.
Due to Grimes’ injury, Fournier will likely be the starter at the beginning of the regular season, and that could stay the same depending on what Thibodeau wants to do. Grimes understands the situation, though.
Quentin Grimes thinks Evan Fournier has ‘earned’ Knicks’ starting SG spot
After practice on Monday, Grimes said:
"“I think I knew that coming in, because Evan, he earned it, really. It’s his 11th year. … Thibs said you have to come in and earn it,” Grimes said after participating fully in practice Monday in Tarrytown. “That’s what I kind of expected coming into training camp, but then I kind of got hurt, so it kind of derailed that.But I felt like [Fournier] earned it. He was the guy that had it coming in. And I had to prove myself. I didn’t get the opportunity to do that.”"
As Grimes mentioned, he didn’t get the opportunity in training camp to prove that he should be New York’s starting shooting guard. His status for Friday will be key, but he won’t win the starting job in one preseason game. That doesn’t mean that Grimes won’t be able to win over the starting spot, but based on his availability, he hasn’t gotten the chance to do that yet.
The Knicks kept Grimes out of the Donovan Mitchell trade talks for a reason. He’s a 3-and-D wing that will complement Jalen Brunson in the backcourt, which is something that Fournier can’t do. For now, Grimes’ priority should be preparing himself physically and mentally to make his 2022-23 debut, and when that happens, Fournier’s starting job should no longer be as safe.
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