Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier receive mixed reception in Knicks return

The Knicks faithful had a warm reception as Quentin Grimes played his first game back at Madison Square Garden after he was dealt to the Detroit Pistons in a move just before the NBA trade deadline. Evan Fournier wasn't as lucky.

However, no video tribute was played for the former Knicks during New York's ugly 113-111 win over Detroit.

Grimes, selected by the Knicks with the 25th overall pick in the 2021 draft, received a nice ovation when he entered the game in the first quarter. 

And while the crowd was on his side, Grimes entered the night believing he had something to prove. “You do got a little extra oomph when you wake up in the morning and come in and try and go off against the team that traded you,” Grimes said at shootaround earlier on Monday.

Fournier's reception included a smattering of boos when he entered in the first period, and the booing continued whenever he touched the ball during his first few possessions. The lone cheer – and one of the loudest of the night – that Fournier received came after he was assessed a technical foul early in the fourth quarter for arguing a foul call.

Grimes and Fournier had slow starts in the first half, scoring just two points in 16 total minutes, but the duo combined for nine points to open the fourth and helped cut the Knicks' lead to two with under eight minutes to play.

Later in the period, Grimes tied the game from the line before giving the Pistons their first lead since the first quarter on a three. His layup with 37 seconds to go gave Detroit a one-point lead before a wild finish saw Josh Hart win it with 2.8 seconds to play. 

Grimes converted 4 of 6 attempts from the field in the fourth, to finish with 14 points, three rebounds, three blocks, two assists and a steal in 24 minutes. Fournier had seven points with two steals and a block in 20 minutes.

Before the game, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said he was happy his ex-players were getting an opportunity in Detroit.

“Both are great guys, I’m happy for them, they did a great job for us,” Thibodeau said pregame. “It’s a new opportunity, that’s sort of the nature of our league. So I have great respect for both of those guys. Wish ‘em well except when they play against us.”

In the deal with the Pistons, the Knicks landed Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks in exchange for Grimes, Fournier, Malachi Flynn, Ryan Arcidiacono and two second-round picks.

Flynn, who joined the Knicks on the Dec. 30 trade with Toronto that brought OG Anunoby and Precious Achiuwa to New York, was not the recipient of much acknowledgment when he entered off the bench. He appeared in just 14 games during his short stint with the Knicks, playing a total of 60 minutes and scoring 31 points on 23 attempts.

Flynn had eight points on 3-for-6 shooting with three rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes on Monday.

In parts of three seasons with the team, Grimes started 90 of 162 games played and averaged 8.6 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 23.6 minutes per night.

Fournier played sparingly in his final year and a half with the franchise after losing his spot in the rotation around December 2022, which led to some thorny moments. However, he did set the franchise record for made three-pointers in a season in his first year with 241.

Fournier played just three games for the Knicks this season before the trade. He has appeared in four games for the Pistons and is averaging 11.5 points and 3.8 rebounds in 21.5 minutes a night while shooting 47.4 percent from three.