Mar 10, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Quentin Grimes (5) on the court prior to the game against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
CAMDEN - Quentin Grimes was all smiles as he talked to teammates and coaches after Wednesday's practice.
It was as if there was no summer-long stalemate between the Sixers and the shooting guard's camp.
He insists there are no hard feelings about the outcome of his restricted free agency.
"It's in the past. It's a business, I know that. I'm here to play for the city of Philly, play for my teammates, play for Coach Nurse and to go out there and do whatever I can to help this team win, for sure,"Grimes told reporters on Wednesday.
He threw in a Bingo card of diplomatic cliches.
"I'm here to play basketball. What I can control, I try to control that. That's how hard I go in the gym, preparation wise and working on my body. I leave that up to my agent and the front office," Grimes said.
Whether he really feels that way, who knows. Whether he harbors any resentment deep down, who knows.
But he didn't have to say what he volunteered next:
"Hopefully I get to be back here and sign a longer-term deal. I wanted to be back here on a longer-term deal."
For now, Grimes is just happy to be where his feet are. His mind isn't on the money. It's on helping the Sixers win basketball games.
Grimes claims the most difficult part of his free agency was the waiting process.
"This is a business, I know that. It's the NBA. There are things that you can't control and stuff like that, contracts and stuff like that," he said.
Grimes kept in touch with the likes of Tyrese Maxey, Trendon Watford, Eric Gordon and Kelly Oubre Jr.
"We have a pretty close-knit group of guys checking in on me. I wanted to be back. So I'm happy to be here right now, for sure," Grimes said.
He acknowledged that there would be a period of adjustment as the summer faded into a new season in his career. A free agent, especially one who knows he might have to take the risk of the qualifying offer, is going to prepare for a new season with an eye on mitigating injury. At least until the business gets done.
Grimes knew he couldn't partake in some of the activities his would-be teammates in Philadelphia were doing. He looked to his roots to keep himself disciplined.
"I was down at [University of Houston] and, if you all know anything about Coach Sampson, I was in pretty good shape. We were down there working out with the guys and competing down there with some live action, stuff like that," Grimes said.
"That was my first time really getting up and down, five-on-five, but I feel like I'm in great shape. Coach Sampson had me doing some pretty good conditioning down there, for sure."
Now that the business has concluded, Grimes can focus on the Sixers.
While the Phillies were peeing themselves in Game 1 of the NLDS on Saturday, Grimes was arriving in Philadelphia and going to the gym. While the team was flying back from Abu Dhabi and recovering from a long trip, Grimes was working on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.
"Trying to get as much reps possible as I can," he explained.
Grimes has enjoyed seeing his teammates and competing hard since his return to Philadelphia. Wednesday was his first real practice. He's had fun.
He didn't get to work out with his teammates over the last few days. He's spent a lot of time simulating what the Sixers are trying to do.
"We had a couple of the coaches back that were putting him through all that stuff in a kind of group setting even though he was the only player out there," Nick Nurse told reporters on Wednesday.
"They fill in all the other spots just to get him up to speed as fast as he can.
Nurse acknowledged that Grimes is "certainly behind" on a lot of what the Sixers are implementing. Grimes agrees.
"We got some new wrinkles on offense. Stuff like that. Trying to get the terminology down. Trying to get more reps in with the guys. Learn the plays a little more," Grimes said.
"I was only here for about two months last year, so we got a whole new offense and I came here a little late. So just trying to get as much reps with the guys as I can. Before practice, after practice, off days."
"We've obviously changed a lot of things we're doing. So he's got to catch up with that. He was, for me today, understanding what we were doing," Nurse said.
"He was very good - not great, but very good. Like, he was getting most of it. That's pretty good for one day."
According to the head coach, Grimes brought explosion, athleticism and energy to his first official practice with the team.
"He played hard and looked like he's been working out. I hadn't seen him. I mean, he's had a couple of shooting sessions here while we were gone," Nurse said.
"But they did report that he was looking good, but there was a lot of live action out there today. It didn't look like his first day. So he's in good shape and, again, he looks very energetic and bouncy and athletic."
From the sounds of it, Grimes' experience will not give him a competitive advantage as he jockeys for position in a crowded backcourt.
In assessing the first handful of practices and two preseason games, Nurse came away thinking that Maxey and VJ Edgecombe both looked very comfortable running the offense and playing off the ball. The synergy between those two is "advanced" in Nurse's eyes.
Between the impression that Edgecombe has made and the fact that Nurse didn't sugar-coat where Grimes stands relative to the field, it sounds more and more likely that the rookie has wedged his way into the real starting lineup.
That hardly means Grimes is locked into a reserve role, though. In fact, Nurse claims that a three-guard starting lineup is "certainly on the table".
What better time to toy with that thought than in Friday's preseason game in Philadelphia?
