Evan Fournier was already prepared to be erased from the Knicks’ record books once this season, but now it looks like he could be knocked out twice by the same player.
Donte DiVincenzo made 11 3-pointers in Monday’s blowout win over the Pistons, one more than the previous record Fournier shared with J.R. Smith.
DiVincenzo is also just seven away from Fournier’s club record for treys in a single season with 241 with 11 games remaining with the Knicks.
“Honestly, it’s not surprising at all,” Fournier told the Post after scoring 15 points in 20 minutes against league-worst Detroit. “He definitely found his role and congratulations. He has great chemistry with them, especially JB [Jalen Brunson]And he’s very smart when it comes to finding pockets for 3s and has a very quick release.
“He’s having a great season and deserves it.” [the record]. To be honest, he fits perfectly into their game and I’m happy for him. ”
Fournier broke John Starks’ long-held team record of 217 3-pointers (set in 1995) in his first year with the Knicks two years ago, but he was left out of manager Tom Thibodeau’s rotation last year.
The little-used French guard and his $18.9 million salary were included in the Knicks’ expiration deals with Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks in February.
“It was fun to break the record, but to be honest, with the way the game is now, I never felt like it was a very difficult record to break,” Fournier said. “The first year I was here, it really took me a couple of months to understand my role, but once I understood that I was actually here to film, my numbers picked up. Ta.
“And honestly, I’m not surprised because he’s such a great shooter.”
Fournier, 31, also fondly recalled the night on Jan. 6, 2022, when he tied a record with 10 3-pointers. After scoring 41 points on the day, RJ Barrett defeated the Celtics and the buzzer sounded with a desperate 3-pointer in the fourth. -Quarter horn.
“Yeah, I don’t want to take away Donte’s credit tonight, but my match was definitely more exciting,” Fournier joked. “It was a nationally televised game, it was Boston, it was a close game, and it was definitely one of my fondest memories.”
Pistons coach Monty Williams didn’t praise DiVincenzo or the Knicks afterward, clearly frustrated that they were still producing 3-pointers when they weren’t scoring.
“I don’t care about their team. I couldn’t care less,” Williams said. “I don’t want to be part of the story of how those guys got those three points.”
