Knicks guard Quentin Grimes was one of 28 first-year, second-year and G-League players named to the 2023 Jordan Rising Stars, the NBA announced Tuesday.
Grimes, the 25th-overall pick last year following his collegiate career at Kansas and Houston, will be one of 10 second-year players to participate. Eleven rookies and seven G-League players were also selected for the Feb. 17 tournament, according to the league’s release.
After only starting six regular-season games last year, and only appearing in 46 overall, Grimes has become a staple in the Knicks lineup throughout the 2022-23 campaign. He has averaged 10.3 points per game, emerged as a reliable defender and gradually worked into New York’s rotation after missing time at the start of the year because of a left foot injury. It was a return process orchestrated by head coach Tom Thibodeau that Grimes would later call a “blessing in disguise.”
Other second-year players to make the Jordan Rising Stars include Evan Mobley (Cavaliers), Jalen Green (Rockets) and Scottie Barnes (Raptors), while rookies Paolo Banchero (Magic), Jaden Ivey (Pistons) and Bennedict Mathurin (Pacers) highlight the first-year selections.
Pau Gasol, Jason Terry, former Knick Joakim Noah and former Nets guard Deron Williams will be “honorary head coaches” for the four teams that compete in the Rising Stars tournament.
