Quentin Grimes missed the Knicks’ first three preseason games, and he could end up missing the last one, too. He practiced in full on Monday but after practice on Tuesday, Tom Thibodeau said Grimes would be out for the team’s second match-up against Indiana.
His status for tonight’s game is still unknown, but hopefully the 22-year-old will have a chance to play alongside the four other starters. As expected, Evan Fournier and Jalen Brunson don’t complement one another, but fans have yet to see what Grimes looks like alongside Brunson.
Fournier struggles on defense, which is what Grimes excels at. During training camp, Thibodeau cited Fournier’s shooting as a positive because he helps to space the floor, but his inconsistencies do the team no favors. Let’s not forget that Fournier broke the Knicks’ single-season three-point record last year, and he’s currently the best shooter on the team, but he doesn’t help the offense flow.
rather disappointing performance</a> against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday in a 109-100 loss. The starters looked fine for the most part (except Evan Fournier), but the bench struggled, especially in the fourth quarter.</p>
<p>It’s important to remember that these are meaningless games, but they still give fans a good idea of where the team’s at heading into the regular season. In five short days, the Knicks will be in Memphis to take on the Grizzlies in what will be the first of 82 (hopefully more) meaningful games.</p>
<p>Before we make it to that point, though, let’s take a look at what we hope to see in tonight’s preseason finale.</p>
<h2>3 things fans should hope Knicks make in preseason finale against Wizards</h2>
<h3>3: The Knicks’ reserves bouncing back from a disappointing performance</h3>
<p>New York’s depth is one of its strengths but on Wednesday, the reserves disappointed after they blew a double-digit lead after being up 94-84 with six minutes left to play.</p>
<p>Immanuel Quickley finished with 12 points (4-for-18 from the field, 2-for-7 from three) in 24 minutes, Miles McBride scored two points (1-for-6 from the field, 0-for-3 three) in 18 minutes, and Cam Reddish had 10 points (3-for-10 from the field, 1-for-6 from three) in 21 minutes.</p>
<p>The Knicks had no answer for the Pacers, who scored 32 points in the fourth quarter behind rookie Andrew Nembhard’s 13 points. For a team that was having a hard time getting the ball in the basket, they failed to do anything positive on the defensive end.</p>
<p>Hopes were <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/14/3-things-fans-hope-see-knicks-preseason-finale-wizards/2/"https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/13/knicks-cam-reddish-rotation/">especially high for Reddish</a> entering the preseason, but he’s yet to prove that he deserves a spot in Tom Thibodeau’s rotation. A phenomenal outing from him against the Wizards likely wouldn’t solidify his spot, but it’d certainly help.</p>
<p>It’ll be interesting to see how the bench performs against the Wizards after a dismal outing on Wednesday.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #007BC1" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/14/3-things-fans-hope-see-knicks-preseason-finale-wizards/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> The player fans have been waiting to see </a>
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won’t start</a> on opening night because he’s been out, but depending on how Fournier looks, the second-year guard could find his way into the starting lineup after the first several games. But first, the focus should be to see how Grimes performs in his first outing of the 2022-23 season. Hopefully, fans will get to see that in a few hours.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #007BC1" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/14/3-things-fans-hope-see-knicks-preseason-finale-wizards/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Another look at the Knicks' top three players </a>
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actual point guard</a> in Jalen Brunson has been refreshing. He’s the second-highest scorer behind Barrett with 14.7 points. Brunson struggled to score against Indiana, but he still found ways to contribute. Isaiah Hartenstein had a team-high 10 rebounds on Wednesday, but Brunson, Randle, and Robinson each had eight rebounds. That’s not too shabby for a six-foot-one guard.</p>
<p>Do you know who else has been impressive in the preseason, though? Julius Randle. Now, there are still Knicks fans out there that are hoping that he ends up getting traded this season, but there’s no denying that he’s been off to <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/14/3-things-fans-hope-see-knicks-preseason-finale-wizards/2/"https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/05/julius-randle-notable-growth-knicks-preseason-win-ignored/">a solid start</a>. Randle’s been patient and instead of forcing looks that aren’t there, he’s putting his teammates in positions to score.</p>
<p>Through the first three preseason games, Randle <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2022/10/14/3-things-fans-hope-see-knicks-preseason-finale-wizards/2/"https://basketball.realgm.com/nba/teams/New-York-Knicks/20/stats/2023/Averages/All/points/All/desc/1/Preseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leads New York</a> with 4.3 assists. In total, he’s recorded 14 assists and only two turnovers. Against the Pacers, he looked the best that he has in a long time. Randle had 13 points (5-for-10 from the field, 3-for-6 from three), eight rebounds, and five assists in 25 minutes. The Knicks don’t need him to be the same player that he was the past two seasons, but Randle seems to be adjusting to his new role well.</p>
<p>It’s been fun to watch Barrett, Brunson, and Randle play. That trio has the potential to turn some heads in the Eastern Conference.</p>
<p>Be sure to tune into New York’s preseason finale tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET.</p>
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