Knicks' Evan Fournier Deal Among Recent Worst Moves
It's been three years since the New York Knicks gave Evan Fournier a $73 million contract in free agency.
While the deal looked good at the time, it ended up being one of the bigger mistakes the Knicks have made in recent years.
Bleacher Report writer David Kenyon listed the Fournier deal as one of the seven worst contracts in the last five years.
"New York, which snapped an eight-year playoff drought that season, saw a window of contention opening," Kenyon writes. "Whether the Knicks should've prioritized a true point guard is a fair question, but Fournier offered elite shooting. Within a year, however, he was an afterthought. Fournier fell out of the rotation in 2022-23 and could not regain a spot in 2023-24, either. He totaled 498 minutes with New York during those two seasons while earning $18-plus million each year. After his very expensive bench-sitting, the Knicks shipped him to the Detroit Pistons at the 2024 trade deadline."
Fournier was considered one of the best 3-point shooters in the league when he signed with the Knicks, who were looking to take a step in the right direction after finally returning to the playoffs.
However, the Knicks took a step back that season, much like Fournier, who proved to be a big swing-and-miss for New York.
Fournier also appeared to butt heads with coach Tom Thibodeau, which led to his exclusion from the rotation. Fournier requested a trade many times from the Knicks front office, but his contract was very hard to move as it needed future draft capital attached.
Ultimately, the Knicks were able to trade Fournier to the Pistons in a deal that landed them Bojan Bogdanovic, another 3-point specialist with a pricey contract on the wrong team. Bogdanovic is likely going to see his $19 million guaranteed for the upcoming season in order to include it in a trade, and it's possible that the deal could make Fournier's contract worth it in the long run.
But for now, this is considered as a massive mistake for the Knicks.
JEREMY BRENER
Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.