For as defensively sound and fun to watch as the Knicks were during the regular season, it all came crashing down in the first round of the playoffs. The fourth-seeded Knicks were outmatched across the board while falling in five games to the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks.
Along the way, a sentiment arose as New York continually grappled with a dearth of scoring, especially from the perimeter:
A little more shooting could go a long way.
“The Knicks could’ve used Austin Rivers in the playoffs,” Stefan Bondy, the Knicks beat writer for the New York Daily News, tweeted Friday. And it’s true: While Rivers struggled to find success while wearing an orange and blue uniform earlier this season, he’s been an important piece for the Nuggets already this postseason.
Rivers averaged only 7.3 points in 21 games as a member of the Knicks, but over the past four Nuggets playoff games, he’s averaged 13.5 points on 48.6 percent shooting from the field. He’s also been lights-out from 3-point range, hitting three of them per game at a 52.2 percent clip.
It begs the question: What can the Knicks do in this all important offseason to address the need?
Knicks Targeting Evan Fournier?
One name Knicks fans should keep an eye on this offseason is Evan Fournier. In an article that was published Wednesday, SNY’s Ian Begley wrote the Knicks “had conversations with Orlando prior to the trade deadline about acquiring Fournier.”
Why is that noteworthy now? Begley explains in his piece for SNY:
Tom Thibodeau recently credited the Hawks for surrounding Trae Young with solid shooters. He didn’t come out and say that the Knicks needed more shooting. But it’s easy to make the connection between his comments about Atlanta and how he values perimeter shooting.
Given the Knicks’ past interest in Fournier, they could be among the suitors for him this offseason.
Fournier, a 6-foot-7 shooting guard, was traded to the Boston Celtics from the Orlando Magic at the trade deadline for point guard Jeff Teague. Fournier averaged 19.7 points in 26 games to start the 2020-21 campaign, but averaged only 13 points in 16 regular-season games as a member of the Celtics after a bout with COVID-19. Still, the 28-year-old could command a sizable paycheck in free agency; Fournier earned over $17 million this year as he played in the final season of a five-year, $85 million deal, per spotrac.com.
The key, of course, will be if new Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens is aggressive in attempting to re-sign Fournier.
“It will be interesting to see how Stevens approaches free agents like Evan Fournier,” Begley wrote. “(Danny) Ainge said in a press conference that Stevens didn’t always agree with moves made by the Celtics’ front office. Boston traded for Fournier in late March.”
Nunn on Knicks’ Radar, Too
What about point guard? According to Begley, the Knicks could look to address the position by targeting Kendrick Nunn, who is an unrestricted free agent.
“Nunn, per sources, is among the guards who have been on the Knicks’ radar as they consider their offseason plans,” Belgey wrote.
Begley noted that Nunn, who has averaged 15 points per game over the last two seasons for the Miami Heat, shot 38.1 percent from beyond the arc this season and shot it remarkably well in the second half of the season.
Begley also included Devonte Graham and Lonzo Ball as potential free-agent targets at point guard for the Knicks.
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Knicks a Potential Suitor for Key Celtics Free Agent, per Analyst