Evan Fournier skipped the Knicks’ morning shootaround Wednesday due to personal reasons, and he wasn’t originally expected to play the Hornets to attend to a family matter.
But the veteran guard decided to play, pouring in a team-high 30 points in the Knicks’ 125-114 loss at the Garden.
“If something happens to you and your family and the situation gets more or less under control, it resets everything,” Fournier said. “You’re sure, I’m sure. So it’s like, ‘Okay, now let’s just do what I love without thinking about anything other than enjoying the moment and being present.’
“To be honest, [Tuesday] At night I thought I wouldn’t play. Now that the situation has improved a bit, I’m in the NBA, I’m in New York City, I play Madison Square Garden every night. As a child it was my dream. So I won’t let that affect my love of the game.”
Fournier, who last week broke John Starks’ team record for 3 points in a season, nailed six more against Charlotte to take his season total to 230.
Evan FournierN.Y. Contribution: Karl Wenzelberg
“Says a lot,” said Tom Thibodeau. “His quick wit was enormous for us. Thirty point ball game. Unfortunately we don’t have a win to show for that.”
Quentin Grimes missed his third straight game with a sore knee, adding further credence to the possibility that the Knicks rookie came back too early from the dislocated kneecap that sidelined him for more than a month. Grimes returned to the lineup on March 18 and appeared in five games before sitting out after the team’s win in Miami on March 25.
“You just want to be sure he’s perfectly healthy. That’s the big thing,” Thibodeau said. “So if he’s ready to go, he will go.”
Thibodeau gave no update on Derrick Rose, who is unlikely to return this season after undergoing ankle surgery in December and a follow-up procedure last month.