Quentin Grimes’ minutes and offensive opportunities had diminished dramatically for several weeks, but the Knicks’ starting shooting guard was one of the few players who thrived on both ends of their discouraging two-city trip to Florida this week.
Grimes posted the first consecutive games scoring 20 points or more in his two NBA seasons in road losses to the Heat and the Magic, including 25 on 10-for-18 shooting in 38 minutes on Thursday night in Orlando.
“I’ve felt good. Just trusting my work. It’s all going to pay off,” Grimes said after the game. “I know what I do out there on the court. I just go out there, teammates are finding me and I am hitting shots. I just need to go out there and be aggressive at all times.”
Before doing so in each of the two losses in the Sunshine State, Grimes had attempted 10 or more shots just twice in his previous 17 appearances since Feb. 7.
That essentially aligns with the addition of Josh Hart to the rotation following his deadline acquisition from Portland on Feb. 8.
Grimes also had averaged just 24.3 minutes per game since that date before logging 38 Thursday night against the Magic.
“I feel like everyone’s gonna go through it. We were playing well and we were winning and that’s the main thing, to win,” Grimes said. “So I wasn’t really tripping on when I was gonna get my opportunity again.
“You just gotta wait your turn, really. We have a good team, we have a lot of depth now, I knew I had to be patient and things were gonna follow through.”
Coach Tom Thibodeau and Immanuel Quickley also used the word “aggressive” after the game Thursday to describe the 22-year-old Grimes’ approach on offense over the past two games.
Thibodeau also noted that the second-year wing is “not hesitating” to fire away, including 11 made 3-pointers in 20 attempts.
“Just being who he is. Taking and making big 3s, getting to the rack, finishing around the rim,” Quickley said. “So that’s what we need from him.”
Added Grimes: “Yeah, I’m definitely coming in with a mindset to be ultra-aggressive. Shoot the open shots, make the right plays, just attack, drive and kick and make plays for myself and my teammates.
“So just being aggressive, knowing I can make the right reads for me and for my teammates.”