MESSAGE FROM EVAN: DON’T BREAK US UP!
Fournier says Knicks should keep current roster intact
DENVER — Blow it up, keep it together or tinker?
The Knicks (24-31), despite their freefall during this road trip and discouraging trends, entered Wednesday just 2 ½ games out of a play-in position and eagerly awaiting Derrick Rose’s return from ankle surgery.
Conventional wisdom suggests this roster is bottoming out without much upside, but Evan Fournier, who is among the multiple Knicks in trade rumors, emphatically pitched continuity as the team’s best course.
“When I say something I mean it. I’m not here bulls--tting or saying something just to say it,” Fournier said after the Knicks were pummeled by the Nuggets, their 10th loss in the last 12 games “I really do believe we have the right pieces. We have talent, we have toughness, we have everything. And we’re not that far from playing better and getting wins. It’s just about finding a way to play and sticking with that and building confidence and all that.”
Nobody confused the Knicks for title contenders before the season, but they were coming off a fourth-place in the East and used about $50 million in cap space to upgrade that roster. Much of that money was spent on Fournier, who has played well in spurts but with enough inconsistency to get shopped aggressively ahead of Thursday’s deadline.
Hitting the trade market is not exclusive to Fournier on the Knicks, but it’s noteworthy because they just gave him a four-year, $73 million deal. He was supposed to fix the team’s offensive woes after it was exposed in the playoffs by Atlanta. Instead, the Knicks have regressed in defensive AND offensive efficiency from last season.
Fournier has been traded twice in his career — including just last year from the Magic to the Celtics — and said he’s ignoring the latest round of talks.
“The very first time I heard my name in trade rumors was probably my second year in Orlando,” the Frenchman said. “At first it’s a weird feeling to see your name pop up, your friends are all calling you, asking, ‘What’s going on, do you know anything?’
“The truth is as long as nothing happens it doesn’t matter. We have a job to do, we have games to win. We have to prepare the same way. So yeah, it really doesn’t matter. There’s no effect at all. Actually, the one time I got traded from Denver to Orlando there was no rumors at all, there was nothing. So stuff like that, it’s just a business. Year 10, you just don’t worry about that.”
Although it’d be unpopular for frustrated Knick fans, Fournier thinks maintaining continuity at the deadline will work out for the franchise. As an example, he cited the Cavaliers, who have climbed from the lottery last season to now fourth in the East with a young and balanced roster.
“They’re talented, but not overly loaded,” Fournier said. “We just have to find ourselves right now. We’re kind of going through it. It’s a tough road trip. It’s a tricky part of the season, just before the All-Star break and all the trade rumors. Just focus on what matters, man.”
Of course, the calendar doesn’t help Fournier’s theory. They have the fourth toughest schedule remaining in the NBA, with games against the Warriors, Heat, Sixers (twice) and Suns over the next four weeks.
There’s also the uncertainty of RJ Barrett’s health after he turned his ankle in the closing seconds of Tuesday’s defeat to the Nuggets.
The Knicks have many questions as Thursday’s 3 p.m. deadline approaches, and the front office hasn’t spoken to the media in nearly five months.
Fournier at least offered his suggestion of a plan.
“When you look at the Laker game and Utah, we could have easily won those two games,” Fournier said of recent defeats. “That’s what I mean by execution, execution on offense, execution on defense, because sometimes one or two plays could make the difference.”