New York Knicks forward Cam Reddish is back to square one.
After making strides during Quentin Grimes’ absence, Reddish finds himself on the outside looking in again.
Reddish has been demoted to the far end of the Knicks bench after a short-lived stint as a starter, becoming one of the casualties of Tom Thibodeau’s latest reshuffling.
His zero-point, three-turnover game against the Dallas Mavericks was the final straw that broke the camel’s back, as the team is reportedly shopping him around ahead of the trade deadline.
Reddish wasn’t made available to the media since his demotion, but Thibodeau revealed how the soon-to-be restricted free agent is handling the latest low in his roller-coaster NBA career.
“[Cam’s] good. He’s in working. And that’s all he can do. Come in, have the right attitude and right approach. Concentrate on improving. Rarely is anything ever permanent. When another opportunity comes, be ready.”
Tom Thibodeau via Knicks digital
Reddish did that early in the season, stringing solid games that glued him in the rotation. It was an impressive feat after he became an afterthought in the preseason. He climbed in the Knicks’ pecking order and became a starter in eight games, even after Quentin Grimes returned from a sore left knee. But much like the case in Atlanta, his ascent was cut short by an injury.
Reddish’s sore groin gave Grimes the opening he needed. Grimes never looked back and cemented his spot in the starting unit with his consistent defense, which Reddish lacked despite his superior length and athleticism.
When asked what Thibodeau wanted to see from Reddish and Evan Fournier to get back into the rotation, the Knicks coach had a telling response.
“It’s just you settle on a nine-man rotation, and then whether it’s injury foul trouble or whatever it might be, a guy gets thrown in there, and then if they play well, they continue to play. So it’s a long season. There’s a lot of things that happen and so just stay ready.”
Tom Thibodeau via Knicks digital
Thibodeau encouraged them to be good teammates and help prepare the team in practice until another opportunity opens up. In short, their not part of the core group.
With the Knicks roster crunch and his impending restricted free agency, Reddish could be on the move again.
The Knicks paid a first-round pick for Reddish — a move to kick the can further down the road. But it will be hard to recoup that with Reddish riding the bench.
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