Evan Fournier was the most expensive free agent the Knicks signed last summer, and in the season-start game, he proved that every penny he paid was worth it.
The New York Knicks signed Evan Fournier to a four-year, $78 million contract in the offseason, and fans disagreed. But the all-powerful Frenchman soon won over Knicks fans.
Fournier has been riddled with many trade rumours with the New York Knicks, most notably that he could be traded to the Knicks before last season's trade deadline. In late March, while the deal ultimately failed to materialize, New York executives were so interested in the 29-year-old French shooter.
A professional player with nine years of experience, Fournier played for the Orlando Magic for seven seasons, and despite the team's tepid record in recent years, this has not affected his continued improvement. The 2012 first-round No. 20 rookie played for the Magic in 435 games (including 399 starts) and averaged 16.2 points per game in his mid-career, a career-high 18.5 points in the 2019-20 season, and a three-point shooting rate of 37.6%.
In addition to scoring and a brilliant three-pointer, Fournier also showed excellent organizational skills, averaging more than 3.0 assists per game in four of his seven years with the Orlando Magic.
Fournier comes from Steve Clifford's system and is an old friend of Tom Thibodeau. The Frenchman has been the top ten starting defender in terms of defensive efficiency for two consecutive seasons, which should not be overlooked, as many believe that Fournier will drag the team back in this regard.
With all of these factors in mind, Fournier has shown a well-rounded player who can do better on the offensive end and better on the defensive end, and his technique is key to unlocking the Knicks' full potential.
The Knicks were a bit top-heavy on the offensive end last season, with a combination led by Juliet Randle, RJ Barrett and Derrick Rose that has yet to prove itself in the playoffs, but Fournier's addition has greatly enhanced the team's shooting firepower.
Despite playing just four games, in the opening game against his old club, Fournier proved that he could provide enough firepower for the team to win more games in the form of a career-high 32 points and a career-high six three-pointers.
Many in the industry believe the Knicks will miss Reggie Bullock, who is seeking a long date in Dallas. But the sounds became very quiet after the first week of the season. Fournier quickly broke that skepticism and outnumbered his former starting quarterback in many ways. Fourniers is by no means a substitute for its kind – more like a huge upgrade. Fournier can switch between no-ball and no-ball, he's a more dynamic scorer, and he won't go without a performance in the playoffs with 34 minutes of playtime.
As mentioned above, Fournier's scoring ability is nothing new, and he breaks through himself in a variety of ways every night.
The New York Knicks have revolutionized the way they attack, and now they're a classic modern team. In small samples, Fournier has tried 58 shots this season, only four of which were not outside the three-point line or inside the box, and many three-pointers were a meter away from the three-point line.
Currently, the Knicks' forward swingman averages 3.5 layups per game and hits 50 percent from the field, and averaged more than 40 percent from 3.1 layups per game last season, a lot more than the 37 percent in 2019-20.
While Fournier isn't one of the top dribble shooters and step-back three-pointers, he's able to get away from defenders hitting outside three-pointers with a few simple dribbles and aggressive no-ball runs, and his shooting percentage is impressive and exceeds last season's shooting percentage at the Celtics and The Magic.
And Fournier's three-point ability is outstanding, shooting at or over 40 percent on four of the past five seasons. The Knicks are experimenting with unconventional Blocking Tactics for the No. 4 and No. 2 positions — Fourniers walled Randall first and then fired three-pointers.
Last season the New York Knicks were notoriously slow-paced, low-round teams, and this year's pace has increased by seven rounds compared to last year, and Fournier's fast-break and fast-forward three-pointers have lifted the team's tempo.
Fourniers has had two three-point shots per game over the past two seasons, and if the team continues this rhythm of quick counter-attacks, Fournier's three-point shots could continue to rise. His reliable and consistent scoring ability also added a lot of firepower to the Knicks, who were mired in the half-court offensive quagmire last season.
As the team's offensive capabilities strengthen, Thibodeau can reduce its reliance on Randle. As the team became more united, new tactics were added over the course of four games and the offensive rhythm was maintained, one of which was to hand the ball to Fournier through blocking.
Similarly, his excellent organisational skills are the reason for his high usage in the French national team, and the ability of smart defenders to make the right judgment between shooting shots and passing assists was demonstrated against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Fournier wasn't the main playmaker at the Knicks, but he was well suited to assign secondary offense and sometimes serve as the team's offensive hub.
Theoretically, this makes the Knicks' offensive end more diverse: Randall doesn't have to keep the ball on his own, and the rest of the offensive responsibility is not all on Kemba Walker's shoulders. RJ Barrett has been a good organizational core for the past two seasons, and even Mitchell Robinson, who (though spends most of his time rebounding and defending) has done well in passing.
From the raw statistics, Fournier's overall impact may be seen by others as a negative impact on the team. RJ-Barrett may stagnate in scoring every game, but if the individual offensive efficiency is improved, it will undoubtedly improve the overall strength of the team.
The same can be applied to Kemba Walker, who will find his moment one night, just as he did against the 76ers. He doesn't need to be a starting All-Star like he did at Charlotte, but as long as that moment comes up, the team has an extra bonus.
Although it's still early this season, Evan Fournier has shown he can add more outside offense and steady scoring points to the team, which is exactly what the Knicks are after. His shooting percentage may have dropped slightly, but five years of hard work shows he still has offensive standards above the league average. Interspersed with some organizational passing, he would be another point of threat to the team.