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During a December 29 matchup against the San Antonio Spurs, estranged New York Knicks wing Evan Fournier made his return to the hardwood after a six-week, 22-straight DNP hiatus.
Despite not having played any on-court action for such an extended period, the 30-year-old proved to be rather effective in his first game back, finishing the night with 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals on 66.7% shooting from the field in just shy of 17 minutes played.
While Fournier has remained rather silent since his removal from the Knicks’ regular nine-man rotation back on November 13, less than 24 hours after seeing his first lick of playing time in nearly two months he headed to his personal Instagram account to publicly voice his feelings on this recent turn of events.
The post directly relates to his post-game comments immediately following the outing where he noted that he’s happy to have finally received another chance to play and that it was “a lot easier” for him to go out and showcase his on-court skills rather than “to sit on the bench and watch the guys play.”
Knicks Coach Praises Fournier
Though he may not be found within the Knicks’ regular rotation anymore, Tom Thibodeau still seemingly has the utmost respect for Evan Fournier.
During his post-game media session following New York’s loss to the Spurs, the two-time Coach of the Year recipient was found praising the 11-year veteran in front of reporters, particularly highlighting his level of professionalism throughout the season.
“It’s a credit to him, he’s a true pro,” Thibodeau said about Fournier. “It’s not easy…but that’s what being a professional is and that’s what the expectation is.”
Despite having signed a lucrative four-year, $73 million deal just two summers ago, Evan Fournier has found himself constantly interwoven into the league’s trade rumor mill and is viewed unanimously as one of the most likely players to be dealt before the February 9 deadline.
Knicks Guard a Target for Conference Rival?
Evan Fournier isn’t the only member of the New York Knicks who has been heavily linked to trade rumors this season, as fellow veteran Derrick Rose is also a player that is likely to be seen heading outbound before or around early February.
Though the 34-year-old may no longer be the franchise cornerstone and league MVP that he once was, there’s still reason to believe that if put in the proper setting he could be of great service to an NBA franchise and, according to one executive, the Miami Heat could be the team that could benefit the most from acquiring his services.
“Miami is a team to look at there, they’re not confident that Kyle Lowry will be healthy in the playoffs, and they’ve had interest in Rose before,” the executive told Heavy Sports’ NBA Insider Sean Deveney.
Since officially accepting his status as a glorified role player, Derrick Rose has proven to be a sensational rotational player when given a proper workload.
From 2018-19 onward, the guard has put up impressive per-game averages of 14.9 points, 4.2 assists, and 2.5 rebounds on 47% shooting from the floor and 35.9% shooting from distance.
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