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Quentin Grimes shows out as Knicks open summer league with win

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LAS VEGAS — Quentin Grimes’ goal was to “dominate” summer league play. 

It took him some time Friday night, but the Knicks’ young guard followed through in his team’s opening game. 

After missing eight consecutive shots, Grimes took off in the second half, leading the Knicks to a 101-88 victory over the defending Las Vegas Summer League champion Warriors at the Thomas and Mack Center. 

With team president Leon Rose, owner James Dolan coach Tom Thibodeau and teammates Julius Randle, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish and Obi Toppin in attendance, Grimes finished with 24 points, eight assists, four rebounds, two steals and just one turnover in 32 quality minutes. 

“I feel like I kind of dominated or almost got close in the second half,” Grimes said. “Just try to dominate offensively, defensively by being in the right positions. It’s not always about making shots.” 

Quentin Grimes dominated in the Knicks’ first Summer League game.
NBAE via Getty Images

While his perimeter jumper was off for most of the night — the former first-round pick out of Houston went 4-for-14 from 3-point range — the 6-foot-4 Grimes kept on shooting. 

Even after hitting two in a row from distance early in the third quarter to get going, Grimes didn’t settle for long jumpers. He attacked the basket and finished through contract, something he has worked on this offseason to complement his 3-point shot. He hit seven of his last 12 shots, and also was a strong distributor on this night. 

“Hopefully I’ll have a bigger role as a playmaker [this year] and also stick to my roots as a defensive player and as a shooter,” he said. 

Quentin Grimes finished with 24 points, eight assists, four rebounds and two steals.
NBAE via Getty Images

This is a crucial offseason for Grimes, the best Knicks rookie last year, whose progress was set back by a knee injury late in the year. Thibodeau has raved about his defense, which may give Grimes a shot at a starting role in the backcourt next year, alongside newcomer Jalen Brunson. 

He is hoping to make a statement over the next 10 days in Las Vegas. With that in mind, Friday night was a strong start for him. 

Feron Hunt added 17 points, Jericho Sims had 16 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks and Miles McBride chipped in 14 points and seven assists in the win. 

Moses Moody, a lottery pick a year ago, led all scorers with 34 points for the Warriors. 

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Knicks blow huge lead to Trail Blazers, end trip on sour note

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PORTLAND, Ore. — Another game out west. Another double-digit lead choked away, this one the most shameful.

The Knicks gagged on a 23-point advantage in the second half Saturday as the Trail Blazers pounded them into submission in a shocking 112-103 come-from-behind victory at Moda Center.

The Blazers made a 40-16 run in the second half and outscored the Knicks 35-11 in the fourth quarter from hell. That left the Knicks facing a looong redeye flight home after this horrible defeat. They shot 3-for-18 in the fourth quarter and were obliterated 19-7 on the boards.

Coach Tom Thibodeau questioned his team’s toughness afterward.

“We’ve just got to find a way to get that done,’’ Thibodeau said. “That’s what toughness is about. That’s why competitiveness, toughness, all that matters. Discipline.’’

The Knicks went 1-4 on their Western swing. In three of those losses, the Knicks had double-digit leads, including a 21-point bulge against the Lakers on Feb. 5 to open the trip. With the loss Saturday, they fell to 25-32 on the season, wasted one of Kemba Walker’s best recent games and couldn’t build on their stunning win Thursday at Golden State.

Josh Hart, who scored 23 points, grabs a rebound during the Knicks’ 112-103 loss to the Trail Blazers
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“It just fell apart,’’ said Walker, who finished with 23 points, shooting 7-for-12 with four 3-pointers. “Tough trip for us, it wasn’t good. We had one good win. We were hoping to build off that win [Saturday] but unfortunately we didn’t. Obviously, it just wasn’t a really good trip for us.’’

The Blazers (23-34) are coming off a trade-deadline fire sale, but they still have the young Anfernee Simons, who finished with 30 points. The newly acquired Josh Hart scored 23 in his Blazers debut.

Randle continued a Western spree, scoring 28 points, 16 rebounds and six assists, but it was all for naught. He scored just four points in the fourth quarter.

“It was bad,’’ Randle said. “We were rolling pretty much the whole game. We have to finish the trip off. End of story. I don’t care what it is. Up 20-plus in the third, got to finish it off.

“We have to have more of an awareness throughout the game,’’ Randle added. “As the leader I have to have more of an awareness of what’s going on. When they’re making a run like that, we have to make sure we get a good shot on the offensive end and be more aware when Simons has it going.’’

Julius Randle, who scored 28 points, goes up for a shot during the Knicks’ loss.
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The Knicks looked spent during the final-period collapse, with the grind of their 10-day, five-game trip catching up while the Blazers were coming off a three-day break. But Thibodeau said there are no excuses.

“Sometimes it’s in your favor, sometimes it’s not,’’ Thibodeau said of the schedule. “Everyone goes through long road trips. It’s part of it. The toughness is you’re on the road a long time; maybe there is some fatigue, but to still have the ability to do all the things that are necessary, even though you may not be feeling your best.

“We’re counting on each other to get the job done. So, it’s five guys tied together on offense and five guys tied together on defense. If one guy is choosing not to do — even if it’s not going his way, then it’s gonna hurt the group.’’

The Knicks were rolling along with Walker sizzling and Randle dominating, as he had all trip. But Randle, facing hard double-teams, went quiet, and he committed two straight turnovers during the fourth-quarter blitz — bouncing a ball off his foot and out of bounds, then firing a pass that was intercepted.

The bold Blazers finally took the lead with 3:20 left on a dunk by Jusuf Nurkic as they dominated inside and the Knicks looked exhausted.

The Knicks got no help from Evan Fournier, who was 1-for-13 for four points. Mitchell Robinson had an injury-ravaged nightmare, finishing with two points and no rebounds before leaving with an ankle injury in the third quarter.

The Knicks, already without Nerlens Noel, struggled at center with Randle needing to play the position at one point.

“Rebounding was problematic,’’ Thibodeau said.

As is their season.

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Knicks’ Quentin Grimes adored by coach as ‘fierce competitor’

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Before the Knicks acquired Cam Reddish from the Hawks for Kevin Knox and a protected first-round pick on Thursday, Atlanta reportedly asked for Quentin Grimes.

But given the way coach Tom Thibodeau spoke glowingly about Grimes on Friday, perhaps it should be no surprise that the Knicks were not willing to part with the rookie.

“I love Grimes. I love Grimes,” Thibodeau said Friday after practice. “He’s a fierce competitor, can shoot the ball, can guard multiple positions, and he’s only going to get better. You look at his shot profile, it was great in college. It’s been great in the pros. So that’s an important part of winning. Then to see the way he guards people, his competitiveness, that stands out.”

Grimes has played in 24 games this season, including two starts, while averaging 4.9 points and shooting 38.4 percent from 3-point range in 13.7 minutes. But the Knicks’ recent COVID-19 and injury issues have opened the door for him to see more of an opportunity, and he has taken advantage.

Quentin Grimes
NBAE via Getty Images

In his past 10 games — during which the Knicks have gone 7-3 — Grimes is averaging 6.7 points, 2.1 rebounds and one steal in 21.1 minutes.

While Reddish won’t play immediately because of a sprained ankle, it remains to be seen whether his arrival will force somebody out of the rotation.

Thibodeau admitted that would likely happen at least when Kemba Walker and Derrick Rose return from injuries, but did say he liked how the current rotation was playing.

“The group that’s playing now is playing well,” Thibodeau said. “So we want to keep that going.”

Walker, who has missed the past seven games with left-knee soreness, is “doubtful” to play against the Hawks on Saturday, Thibodeau said.

Before he addressed the acquisition of Reddish, Thibodeau made sure he gave props to Knox, whose disappointing Knicks tenure ended after three-plus seasons.

“Kevin did a good job for us,” Thibodeau said. “I have great respect for him and his professionalism, the way he handled himself and of course we wish him well moving on.”

Asked if he had heard from any former Duke teammates since the Reddish trade went down — Zion Williamson notably joined them to form a Big 3 for the 2018-2019 Blue Devils — RJ Barrett said with a grin, “We’ll keep that in-house,” possibly wanting to avoid any whiff of tampering.

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Knicks confirm Kemba Walker-Derrick Rose point guard plan

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The point guard battle was over before it started when Derrick Rose all but ceded the starting job to Kemba Walker on media day.

Tom Thibodeau confirmed the plan on Wednesday, citing Rose’s value and experience playing coming off the bench last year.

“The one thing I feel very strongly about is our second unit played very well together last year,” the Knicks’ coach said following the second practice of training camp. “Want them to stay intact.”

Thibodeau did say it is not set in stone that Walker, a four-time All-Star from The Bronx, will start throughout the season. He also pointed out that it’s more important who finishes games.

Rose averaged 14.9 points and 4.2 assists in 35 games last year for the Knicks, and became a pivotal part of the team after coming over in a February trade from the Pistons. He frequently closed out games and could do so again.

“So the guys that give us the best chance to win are going to finish,” Thibodeau said.

Kemba Walker and Derrick Rose
N.Y. Post: Charles Wenzelberg

Rookie shooting guard Quentin Grimes singled out two experienced Knicks who have helped him and the other rookies so far.

“The two guys have really been Kemba and D-Rose,” Grimes said. “They both helped me for sure just going in drills telling me what to expect, competing every day in training camp, how it’s going to be during the season, just little things to do recovery-wise.

“Just having two big-time veterans like that, it’s going to be really good for my development for sure.”

Thibodeau isn’t concerned with the nature of the beefed-up Eastern Conference and what that could mean for the Knicks. Several teams in the league have improved, which experts believe may lower his team’s ceiling. But entering his second year, Thibodeau isn’t thinking about anyone else but his team.

“I think you go into every season and we feel if we’re doing the right things, the results will take care of themselves,” he said. “So understand what goes into winning, do everything you can to help the team win and if we get the whole group doing that, we like our chances.”

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Miles McBride , Quentin Grimes dominate in summer league

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LAS VEGAS — Knicks brass couldn’t be more delighted by Saturday’s happenings. The July 29 draft is starting to look as pretty as a pink flamingo.

Turns out the Knicks didn’t need starting point guard Immanuel Quickley, who sat out Saturday’s game vs. Cleveland with a sore groin.

And so debuted the starting rookie backcourt of point guard Miles McBride and shooting guard Quentin Grimes. They lit up Vegas with a combined 51 points as the Knicks held off the Cavaliers, 103-94, at Thomas & Mack Center to move to 3-2.

These aren’t lottery picks. A little more than two weeks ago, Grimes was tabbed 25th. McBride fell to 36.

According to a NBA source, Knicks officials are delighted their draft picks look significantly more polished than during the draft combine in late June.

Grimes scored 28 points with McBride adding 23. The duo combined to shoot 17-of-34 from the field — 11-of-22 from 3-point land. Fifty percent — 50 percent.

Quentin Grimes and Miles McBride
Getty Images (2)

“I thought they did a great job — a lot of energy to start,’’ summer-league coach Dice Yoshimoto said. “One thing we talked about after [Friday’s loss to Detroit] was to have energy and intensity to the game. We made a point about being aggressive on both ends of the floor.’’

Grimes, the Houston product, has scored 53 points in the past two games after a slow start to summer league.

McBride, out of West Virginia, had a rough shooting game in the Friday loss (2-of-14) and bounced back with a vengeance. He sank 9 of 14 shots with five assists as he took control of the starting-point guard role from Quickley. McBride sank five of eight from 3-point land.

“I tell him to shoot when he’s open, don’t hesitant, let it fly,’’ Yoshimoto said. “As long as he continues to shoot the right ones, I’m OK with that.’’

No one knows how much Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau will play McBride-Grimes this season, and he has yet to comment on the Knicks’ four draft picks. But The Post reported before the draft Thibodeau pushed for McBride.

As the Cavaliers scrambled back to within three with 2 minutes left, Grimes nailed a clutch left-wing 3-pointer and McBride hit a tough runner off the glass, old school.

Meanwhile, Obi Toppin, the summer league’s fifth-leading scorer and 2020 lottery pick, bulled and skied his way to 21 points (8-of-20 from the field).

Even better, the highlight defensive play came when another Knicks 2021 draft pick, rookie center Jericho Sims, skied in the opening quarter to block emphatically a driving layup by Tre Scott, eliciting one of the loudest roars of the night. Sims, picked 58th, notched eight points and nine rebounds.

The only downer was the Cavaliers’ third pick in the draft, center Evan Mobley, sat out.

As for the McBride-Grimes duo, they may get one more chance at it as the Knicks will finish the summer league with a consolation game vs. Atlanta on Monday at 7 p.m.

That will be intriguing because the Knicks traded their 19th pick for Charlotte’s future first-rounder, and the Hawks went on to select highly touted but baggage-ridden Jalen Johnson with the 20th pick.

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