Quentin Grimes’ status called into question with nonexistent Knicks defense
Armed with a two-game win streak, the New York Knicks visited a struggling 6-9 Golden State Warriors team on Friday, but that didn’t matter. It all started with Klay Thompson, who entered the night shooting a career-low 33% from the field. Thompson knocked down a trio of three-pointers in the first quarter and scored 11 points, which is the most that he’s made in a quarter this year.
Thompson cooled off, but it had nothing to do with being bothered by New York’s defense. In fact, the Knicks were giving open looks to the Warriors all night long as one of their best perimeter defenders Quentin Grimes watched from the bench.
Grimes was dealt an unlucky hand at the start of training camp with a sore left foot. That injury lingered into the start of the regular season after he re-aggravated it by playing in the Knicks’ preseason finale. He didn’t make his regular season debut until Nov. 2, but since that night, he’s played in a total of 43 minutes.
The 22-year-old is active but based on Tom Thibodeau continuing to not play him, Grimes’ minutes still must be situational. In this instance, situational means that he isn’t going to take the court unless he’s playing in meaningless minutes. If Grimes can’t get minutes against a team that has the best three-point shooter in the history of the game, what’s the deal?
So many matchups over the past week or so feel like Quentin Grimes ones and for whatever reason, they aren't.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) November 19, 2022
Quentin Grimes gets 2 minutes of play as Knicks’ defensive woes continue
Evan Fournier has racked up three consecutive DNPs after Thibodeau finally removed him from the starting lineup and the rotation entirely. Quentin Grimes nearly got a DNP for the third straight game as the Knicks shot 26.5% from three and the Warriors shot 36%.
Over the summer, it was thought that Grimes was untouchable in trade talks for Donovan Mitchell. However, SNY’s Ian Begley has reported that the Knicks were reluctant to include both Grimes and RJ Barrett in a deal. Even then, it still is perplexing why Grimes is available to play, but isn’t. As a 3-and-D wing, New York could really use his help.
The final two minutes of the game that Grimes played in didn’t matter, but it should be noted that he hit the only three that he attempted.
Are the Knicks being mindful about ensuring that Grimes’ injury doesn’t flare up again? Can he not play more than a few minutes at a time? Will he be back to his normal self sooner rather than later? Is Grimes good to go, but Thibs just isn’t playing him?
There are so many questions, but no answers. For a player that Knicks fans believed could be the team’s starting shooting guard, Grimes hasn’t had the start to the season that many hoped he would. His health is what’s important, but New York needs to be more transparent about team injuries, starting with Quentin Grimes.
