Knicks trying to include Evan Fournier in multi-team trade

We hadn’t reached the halfway point of May when we first heard from Evan Fournier discussing his future (or lack of) as a member of the New York Knicks organization.

Nearly two months later, Jake Fisher of Yahoo Sports is reporting the interest of the Knicks in trading Fournier’s expiring deal as part of a multi-team trade in the event such an opportunity pops up in the next few days or weeks.

In his column, Fischer goes on to discuss multiple high-profile players such as James Harden, Damian Lillard, and Pascal Siakam, all of whom have hit the rumor mill of late and are reportedly available for a trade or straight demanding one.

Touching on Siakam and teammate O.G Anunoby, Fisher mentioned the Indiana Pacers as a potential destination for them while also naming the Pacers as a potential candidate to land Cam Payne from the Phoenix Suns.

“There was some talk around Summer League about a developing multi-team trade discussion,” Fisher started. “Maybe there’s some business to be done with the Knicks.”

According to information obtained by Fisher, “rival front offices continue to say New York remains engaged on trade avenues for veteran shooter Evan Fournier, and the Knicks are amenable to doing so as part of multi-team frameworks, sources said.“

This report is hardly surprising, of course, considering Fournier's situation in New York last year, let alone entering the next campaign.

Fournier said last May that “obviously, there are gonna be changes,” adding “I’m gonna get traded.” He has just assumed, and that’s nothing unreasonable. The veteran is coming off a year in which he just appeared in 27 games for the Knicks averaging 6.1 PPG, 1.8 RPG, and 1.3 APG in devastating fashion.

The Frenchman, who inked a four-year deal worth $78 million in the summer of 2021, is entering the final guaranteed year of his contract making him an appealing asset for rebuilding teams to trade for in exchange for some pick compensation to soften the blow. The problem, of course, will be finding a franchise with enough cap room to land the veteran, who is expected to earn nearly $19 million next year and comes with a team option for the 2025 season at a similar salary.

According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the Knicks reportedly included Fournier in the package they put together and offered the Los Angeles Clippers when they entered trade talks to acquire Paul George at the NBA Draft.

Back on July 6, Scotto wrote that “New York was considering a package featuring Obi Toppin, Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier, and three first-round picks in exchange for George,” according to league sources.

That deal went nowhere, and the Knicks ended up trading Toppin to the Pacers a few days later in exchange for a couple of little-value second-round picks.

Stefan Bondy, of the New York Daily News, tweeted on June 22 right before the draft that “reps of Evan Fournier are working to find a trade.” Again, a move never materialized on draft night.

It looks like New York is playing the same slow-cooking game it already used last summer when the franchise became involved in the summer-long Donovan Mitchell saga, only for Cleveland to launch an unexpected monster offensive that landed the Elsmford native in Ohio leaving New York in the cold.

All things considered, the Knicks are in no rush to trade Fournier today instead of waiting for tomorrow, next week, October, or the trade deadline next February. Waiting for the right moment and deal to come out of left field might be the right approach...or a wildly-backfiring one.

Better late than never...or now? Only time will tell.