Knicks’ Evan Fournier not worried by preseason shooting woes

Entering his 10th NBA season, Evan Fournier knows not to put too much stock into a preseason shooting slump.

The Knicks’ $78 million free agent signing connected on just 30.0 percent of his 3-point attempts and 35.5 percent overall during the team’s 4-0 preseason slate.

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau has said that he wants Fournier and point guard Kemba Walker — who played together in Boston late last season after the former was acquired from Orlando — need to “be themselves” without worrying about trying to fit in with their new teammates.

“I was just told that actually, which makes sense,” Fournier said after practice Sunday. “The season is kind of my first time being the new guy on the team. But I have no [concerns] at all.

“Preseason is preseason. It’s actually made to make mistakes and to learn from your teammates and plays and stuff. Once the season starts you start to get into a rhythm. The main thing is to be yourself.”

The 28-year-old Frenchman added he’s glad the preseason is behind him and he can look forward to his team debut Wednesday night.

“To be honest, I do. There’s just a different atmosphere when the season starts,” Fournier said. “Obviously nobody takes preseason lightly. But there’s not the same intensity, there’s not the same focus. Because once it starts, it starts for real. Especially when you have a big game like Boston.”

Fournier believes Wednesday’s game against the Celtics “would have more value for Kemba” than it does for him. Fournier appeared in 21 games (playoffs included) after a trade deadline deal from Orlando, where the Knicks will play their second game of the season on Friday.

“I played there for seven years. It’s just funny that it’s back-to-back, Boston and Orlando,” Fournier said. “I’m not someone who thinks ahead. I stay in the moment, or just try to. “There’s a lot of guys gone from my [Magic] team from last year or two years ago. The coaching staff is gone and only a few guys [are still there, a handful of guys.”

The waiving of guard Dwayne Bacon and others means that Wayne Selden is a member of the 15-man roster, at least for now.

“He had been here all summer and in the fall, then training camp, and it’s just a lot of the intangibles,” Thibodeau said. “He’s got experience. He’s played in the league, He’s a great practice player, and that’s what we were looking for, someone who could help move the group forward. He’s been terrific in practice. We felt like it’s another wing in a wing-driven league, so that’s what we were looking for.”