Following the NBA trade deadline, former New York Knicks guard Quentin Grimes embraces the challenge of transitioning from one of the Eastern Conference’s hottest teams to the last-place Detroit Pistons.
Despite leaving a championship-hopeful squad in New York, Grimes is welcoming his new challenge with open arms and hopes to take everything he learned from his days in the Big Apple to the Motor City for the remainder of the 2023-2024 NBA season and beyond.
“I can do a lot and contribute to winning,” Grimes told reporters this week as he works on his return to the court. “Bring that winning mindset that we had in New York, bring that over here, bring my competitiveness, my toughness, my edge, and do whatever I can to keep building the culture that coach [Monty] Williams has established so far.”
Before suiting up for the Pistons, Grimes is staring at a team that possesses an 8-45 record before wrapping up one more game and heading into the NBA All-Star break. While he can’t control what happened before his arrival, Grimes looks forward to simply bringing his game to his new squad and potentially expanding his role with a bigger opportunity in front of him.
“Everybody knows I can put the ball on the floor and make plays for myself and my teammates,” Grimes explained. “I feel like coming here with a new group of guys, I’m going to have the ball more. I talked to Coach [Monty] Williams already. Everybody knows me for my three-point shooting and defense, but I definitely can handle the ball and play off the ball.”
Prior to going down with a knee injury in late January, Grimes appeared in all but three of the Knicks’ matchups this season. Spending an average of 20 minutes on the court, he struggled to find the same efficiency from the field while taking fewer field goal attempts per game compared to his first two years in the NBA.
With the Pistons, Grimes anticipates more offensive freedom, which will inevitably lead to more minutes. With the Knicks last season, Grimes took advantage of his nearly 30 minutes per game, as he averaged 11 points while shooting 39 percent from deep. With focus shifting to other areas of his game, Grimes hopes to benefit from an expanded role when he gets the opportunity to debut.
Perhaps, the New York mindset he's bringing could be a huge booster for a struggling Pistons team.
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