ATLANTA — Quentin Grimes isn’t concerned by his diminished role on the Knicks. His focus is on winning games. With that in mind, he’s thrilled with the addition of Josh Hart — even if it means less playing time for himself.
While Grimes has not lost his starting role, his minutes have dwindled since Hart’s arrival — 44 total minutes and just eight shot attempts — and he has not closed the last two games, both Knicks victories.
“It’s not about minutes. It’s trying to win games,” Grimes said on Wednesday before the Knicks faced the Hawks at State Farm Arena in the final game before the All-Star break. “He helps us win games, that’s the main thing.
“You want to finish games, you can’t think about it. That’s when you start messing up. Just go out there, play how I’ve been playing all year, and not worry about that. Just go out there and play the game.”
Grimes, in fact, is eager to learn from the 27-year-old Hart, who is similar to him in a lot of ways. He marveled at how much intensity the former Villanova star plays with, and how much energy he brings upon entering a game.
“He’s definitely a guy you watch out there, see how hard he plays,” Grimes said. “Just go out there and try to match it, because he’s definitely going to make winning plays on and off the ball.”
Grimes, one of the Knicks’ top defenders, started this season on an unfortunate note. He missed almost all of training camp and the first month of the regular season due to a nagging foot injury. He broke into the starting lineup for good on Nov. 20, and has remained a mainstay there as a court-spacing, 3-and-D wing.
But his 3-point shot has betrayed him of late. He has hit just 10 of his last 35 attempts, and his shooting percentage from distance is down to 34.8 percent. Part of that can be attributed to a heavy workload for the second-year guard, who believes the upcoming All-Star break will help him finish the season strong. He only appeared in 46 games as a rookie, averaging 17.3 minutes. Monday night was his 49th game this season, and he’s at a 30.3-minutes per game clip.
“Late part of the season, getting a little tired, probably need this rest a little bit going into the break,” said Grimes, who will be taking part in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday night in Salt Lake City. “So really just getting those legs [underneath me], following through a little bit more. I know everybody is going to go through shooting slumps, which is fine. Not worried about it all.”
The 22-year-old dismissed the notion there is more pressure to play well because of Hart’s presence. Nothing has changed in that department. He has felt a sense of urgency to perform all season.
“I think that’s how it’s been really the whole year,” Grimes said. “[Coach Tom Thibodeau] kind of goes with who’s playing good, who definitely deserves to be out there. Whoever’s making the most impact in the game is who he’s going to rock with, which he should for sure.”