Latest Evan Fournier-Knicks trade idea would be counteractive move
Evan Fournier has been out of the New York Knicks’ rotation for almost a year now, and there isn’t a trade in sight for the 30-year-old shooting guard. As much as he’d like to go to a team where he can contribute, the $18.9 million he’ll make this season poses a problem.
New York signed Donte DiVincenzo in free agency because he’ll help space the floor as a three-point shooter, the team’s biggest flaw in the playoffs. Fournier remained on the bench for the entirety of the postseason, even as the Knicks shot 29% from deep. That’s enough to show Fournier has no future in New York.
In mid-July, Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer reported that the Knicks were engaged in Fournier trade talks and were open to trading him as part of a multi-team deal. Here we are two months later, and nothing came of those talks.
Fournier’s since interviewed with French media outlet L’Equipe to express his displeasure with his role (or lack thereof), but with training camp three weeks away, he’ll likely at least start the season in New York.
Numerous Fournier trade proposals have been floating around on the Internet, and Bleacher Report is still working to get the guard off the Knicks’ roster. One trade idea for New York before the 2023-24 season starts involves trading Fournier to Detroit.
B/R trade idea requires Knicks to attach first-round pick to Evan Fournier in trade
The Knicks reportedly weren’t willing to trade Evan Fournier before the deadline because they didn’t want to attach draft compensation (subscription required) to him. Now that he’s on an expiring contract, why would the front office backtrack on that and send a first-round pick to the Pistons?
Bojan Bogdanovic would be an upgrade over Fournier, as he’s coming off a season where he averaged 21.6 points per game on 41.1% shooting from deep. However, he’ll make $20 million this season, a little over a million more than Fournier’s salary. Bogdanovic has a partially guaranteed salary that will become fully guaranteed ($19 million) on June 29, 2024.
New York has been preparing to trade for a star, which could happen within the next year. It wouldn’t make sense for the front office to send a first-round pick, even if it is top-18 protected, to Detroit for a player who will make $19 million in 2024-25 as a 35-year-old.
The Knicks need to clear their books as much as they can for a star. While Bogdanovic would be an upgrade over Fournier for 2023-24, it would be counteractive to trade for him now.
On top of that, Tom Thibodeau’s nine-man rotation worked well last season, and it’s worth wondering how much playing time Bogdanovic would get in New York. Believe it or not, the Knicks would be better off keeping Fournier than moving forward with this trade idea.