Knicks Ready For Grimes Time? Quentin Grimes Talks Injury, Game 1 Status

The New York Knicks may be getting some starting five firepower back in the lineup in the form of Quentin Grimes for Sunday afternoon's NBA playoff opener against the Miami Heat.

As the New York Knicks closed in on a 106-95 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, there was one spectator wearing blue and orange that couldn't help but find the victory bittersweet, even if he was blessed with courtside seats for one of the biggest victories in recent franchise memory.

"It was tough ... just watching, trying to give as much energy from the sidelines as I can," injured Knicks guard Quentin Grimes said in video from SNY on Friday. "Everybody was going to hold it down. We had good energy before I got hurt, after I got hurt, so it's been good all the way through."

Grimes was reduced to priority seating thanks to a shoulder injury sustained in the Knicks' Game 3 victory at Madison Square Garden. The injury kept the starting five staple out of the latter two stanzas of the five-game conquer of Cleveland entirely but the sophomore first-round pick went through the Knicks' weekend-opening practice incident-free as the Knicks prepare to face the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference semifinals. A return to MSG hosts Game 1 of the best-of-seven set on Sunday afternoon (1 p.m. ET, ABC).

The injury was the latest chapter of a fateful season for Grimes, who began the year as a garbage time custodian before landing an essential role in the Knicks' opening lineups. Grimes, like several other stars in the Knicks' backcourt, struggled during his time on the floor in the early stages of the clash with the Cavs (hitting only 2-of-11 shots including 1-of-9 from three-point range). The Houston alum did gain a slight folk hero status by sinking the clinching free throws of the Knicks' narrow Game 1 victory that helped set the tone for the series, which saw New York allow less than 100 points in all but one game. 

His time in the series was cut short due to the shoulder injury sustained when he tried to go through a screen during the first half of Game 3, which became a 99-79 New York victory. 

Grimes tried to play through the ailment but he described it as getting "worse and worse and worse" to the point where he couldn't even partake in lifting. He underwent an MRI but "the plan" is for him to reassume his role in the Knicks' rotation when the series tips off on Sunday. Josh Hart stepped in for Grimes in the finishing touches of the Cleveland series, putting up 23 points and 19 rebounds in the two starts.

"I went in a screen and kind of just got nicked up a little," Grimes said in describing the injury, likely intending no pun. "I thought it was fine to keep playing through but it kind of just kept getting worse and worse and worse so I couldn't even lift a little bit." 

Despite his early postseason struggles, Grimes' defensive prowess could come up big in stopping the dominant performance of Jimmy Butler. put up 56 points in the penultimate win of Miami's five-game ousting of the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks. Grimes also averaged 16.5 points in four games against the Heat this year, his third-best tally against any Eastern Conference opponent this season (behind only Indiana and Orlando). 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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