Knicks' Tom Thibodeau Defends Benching Evan Fournier in 2022-23 amid Trade Rumors

Evan Fournier has made little secret of his unhappiness with the New York Knicks since falling out of the rotation last year.

Fournier has been hoping to either be moved or see more playing time, but head coach Tom Thibodeau didn't appear particularly sympathetic to the veteran guard's frustrations while speaking to reporters on Monday.

"I have great respect for him," he said. "I didn't go into the season thinking we were going to do the things that we ended up doing. We did it because we weren't having success one way, so we adjusted. And then the next group that went in, it's hard to argue with a 37-22 [record] and a plus-five net rating. It is what it is. Your job is to stay ready, go out there and do it, be a part of the team."

Fournier, 30, began last season as a starter but lost that gig by November. Ultimately he appeared in just 27 games for the Knicks (seven starts), averaging 6.1 points in 17 minutes per game. It was easily his least impactful season since his first two years in the NBA with the Denver Nuggets.

So it was no surprise when he said in May, at the conclusion fo the season, that he expected to be dealt.

"You know I'm not gonna be back," he told reporters at the time. "There's no way they're gonna keep me. I would be very surprised if they do. So, we'll see. It's obviously not in my hands though."

And it was even less of a surprise that he was unhappy a trade never came to fruition, telling French radio station RTL last week that he felt like he was being "held hostage" by the team and wanted a change in scenery (h/t Zach Braziller of the New York Post):

"I'm still in New York at the moment. I want to leave. But beyond leaving, I want to have the opportunity to get some playing time back. That's all. That's mostly it. Because in New York, I feel extremely good. I love living there, I love the franchise, I love playing at Madison [Square Garden], I love the guys on the team. So I just want to play, that's all. It's true that finding another club, changing franchises, if that's what you have to do to play again, that's what I would like to do."

But Fournier's $18.9 million expiring contract makes sense for the Knicks to keep, giving them a big chunk of potential salary to use for matching purposes if they ever swing a deal for a bigger, more expensive star.

Outside of that scenario, Fournier is unlikely to fetch them many win-now players in a trade, so he finds himself in something of a holding pattern, with Quentin Grimes, RJ Barrett, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo far more likely to eat up the minutes on the wing.

It's a situation that has earned Fournier's ire. But Thibodeau had a pretty blunt assessment of the situation.

"We'll see. He's part of the team," he said. "Be a pro, and see how it unfolds."