BOY POL HAS OWN ST. KNICK
Hoopster swings Qns. elex for class prez
A 10-year-old Queens boy was a slamdunk for class president thanks to a big assist from his new BFF — Knick star Enes Kanter.
Pint-sized politician Ihsan Yumak, a fifth-grader at PS 188 in Bayside, met the 6-foot-11 center during a three-day basketball camp in New Jersey last summer, and the pair bonded over the sport and their shared Turkish heritage.
So, like any good budding power broker, when Ihsan decided to run for class president this fall, he turned to his most famous connection for help.
Ihsan asked Kanter if he would visit the school if he got elected.
Kanter did his little buddy one better — offering to hold a basketball clinic at PS 188 as a fundraiser to benefit the school if Ihsan’s classmates elected him. Campaign posters for Ihsan soon depicted the student alongside his NBA hero.
But “many people were saying that it’s impossible to bring in an NBA player, and the pictures that I put on my posters, they said that I Photoshopped them,” Ihsan told The Post on Sunday.
So Kanter sent a photo of himself to the youngster with a sign saying, “Vote for Ihsan” — and even made a video pledging to visit the school if the boy won.
Ihsan was elected class president Thursday, beating out three opponents.
“I achieved my goal because Enes Kanter helped me,” Ihsan said. “It’s always been my dream to become president. Without him, I would not have become president.”
Kanter — who cameme to the Knicks from Oklahoma City in the Carmelo Anthony trade — was thrilled when The Post told him that the boy had won.
“It’s cool. I didn’t know he won. That’s nice,” Kanter said before the Knicks routed Sacramento at Madison Squarequare Gar-Garden Saturday night.
Kanterter added by phone Sundayy that hee wants to help kids from diversee backgroundsds reach higher.
“That a Turkish little kid had the confidence in himself that much to want to be a school president in America — that’s why I wanted to help. It was a really cool thing,” he said.
Kanter was born in Switzerland to Turkish parents. Ihsan is a born-and-raised New Yorker, also of Turkish parentage. The 4-foot-tall youngster plays center for his St. Robert Bellarmine Roman Catholic youth-league team.
Kanter is set to run the charity basketball clinic at PS 188 later this year.
“I’m really excited to visit the school. It’s not just about basketball,’’ Kanter said, adding that he hopes to bring some of his teammates along to the camp.
“Whenever I visit a school, I tell [kids] how important education is and to always follow your dreams,’’ he said.
Ihsan said he wants to use money raised from the clinic to help the school buy new air conditioning.