CHARLESTON, S.C. — Quentin Grimes added a second former NBA player to his list of offseason trainers.
Now he’s entering 12 months 3 with a desire to extend his responsibilities on offense, believing a green light from Tom Thibodeau will help expand his fame from only a 3-and-D wing.
“I feel like everybody knows me as a shooter and a defender. So I’m all the time improving on that — shooting the ball at the very best level, defending at the very best level. But now it’s just getting more comfortable with the ball, making plays for myself, my teammates,” Grimes said at training camp Wednesday. “I see a read, I do know that my teammates and my coaches have given me the trust to go on the market this 12 months and make the correct play.”
Grimes conducted his annual workout with former All-Star Penny Hardaway in the summertime, saying it lasted about 10 days.
More recently, he took lessons from JJ Redick, the previous sharpshooter and current ESPN analyst.
The thought spawned from a conversation with Thibodeau and assistant coach Darren Erman, with Grimes understanding that Redick was all the time adept on the sort of plays that can be designed for the Knicks guard.
“I do know JJ Redick was top-of-the-line shooters ever on this league. His conditioning was otherworldly, stuff like that. So I just tried to get within the gym with him, learn little things, how he would come off screens, pin downs, because I knew that will be a number of the plays that were going to be run for me this season,” Grimes said. “So hopefully I’ll be prepared for them once I get my number called.”
Still, Grimes desires to do greater than catch-and-shoot.
He envisions dribbling and playmaking this season, even when those opportunities are rare in a lineup with Jalen Brunson, RJ Barrett and Julius Randle.
“I feel prefer it’s thing and a foul thing [that other members in the lineup are ball-dominant],” Grimes said. “It’s thing for me because I can space the ground, create driving lanes for RJ, whoever has the ball. But like I said, Thibs and [the assistant coaches], we had conversations this season like if I got the ball on the market and I could make a play, go make a play.
“I actually have the liberty on the market to do what I do.He tells me if I actually have a shot, shoot it. So if any shot looks good to me, I’m gonna let it go. So I feel prefer it’s not likely a matter of who has the ball, who doesn’t have the ball.”
On offense, Grimes spent most of last season hanging out on the perimeter. He averaged just 1.89 seconds with the ball per touch, and 1.1 dribbles per touch. By comparison, Brunson averaged, per touch, greater than six seconds and 5.65 dribbles.
Grimes thinks his time with the rock will change.
“Just getting back to having the ball, like in highschool,” he said.
