KNICKS’ SKID HITS 15 DESPITE SMITH’S 31
DETROIT — The NBA trade deadline passed Thursday with no more deals. So The Frank & Dennis Show will air soon after the All-Star break. And Frank Ntilikina can’t wait. In his first comments since going down with a groin strain on Jan. 27 against Miami, Ntilikina expressed genuine enthusiasm to have secondyear point guard Dennis Smith Jr. on the Knicks. It sounded as if he would rather be teammates working off each other than rivals constantly compared to each other.
Knicks coach David Fizdale envisions pairing them as a potentially fascinating backcourt tandem. And the 20-year-old Frenchman, who was selected at No. 8 in the 2017 draft — one spot ahead of Smith — is ready.
“I was excited, man,’’ Ntilikina said when he learned of last Thursday’s blockbuster trade that sent Kristaps Porzingis to Dallas and brought back Smith, among others. “We bring in another young guy as talented as Dennis is exciting. Right now I’m itching to get back on the court and play with him. There’s a lot of potential with this whole team, especially with Dennis and me. We can play together. He can play with or without the ball. I can do the same. I’m just really excited about being back on the court.”
Ntilikina’s groin is not healing as quickly as hoped. Earlier this week, Fizdale said Ntilikina and former starting point guard Emmanuel Mudiay (shoulder) won’t be back until after the break. The addition of Smith likely makes Mudiay an afterthought since he will be a free agent following the season.
There was thought the Knicks would be inclined to move Ntilikina now that Smith is here, but team president Steve Mills still is rolling with the defense-first guard. Mills and former team president Phil Jackson selected Ntilikina over Smith. For two straight trade deadlines, The Magic have inquired about Ntilikina, but were rebuffed by Mills.
Ntilikina doesn’t seem worried one bit.
“[Thursday] I was just working on my groin and my body,’’ Ntilikina said. “About the trade deadline, I was just really confident. I know I’m good here in New York. I’m happy to be a Knick. I’m doing everything every day to take that confidence back [into] trying to be the best Knick as possible.”
Fizdale has grown to appreciate the 6-foot-6 Ntilikina — even if he’s not the kind of scoring point guard the coach seems to prefer. Ntilikina brings stuff Smith, not known as a defensive demon, does not. And vice versa.
If Mudiay were under contract for next season, things might be different regarding the depth chart. But now it appears Fizdale will ride Ntilikina and Smith, the explosive guard out of North Carolina State who racked up 31 points with eight assists in the 120-103 road loss to the Pistons on Friday in just his third Knicks game. Smith probably would have gotten 10 assists if the woebegone Knicks (10-44) had hit their open shots.
Fizdale is tired of attempting to characterize Ntilikina, who is shooting 34.2 percent and averaging 5.9 points. He has missed the past five games.
“I’ll let them both handle [the ball],’’ Fizdale said. “[Ntilikina] obviously guards the bigger of the two guys. Frank is just a guy, I’m tiredd of trying to label him. I even cann get caught up getting frustrated try-ing to say, he’s this or he’s that. Nah, he’s just a player. He can do whatever you ask him to do out there. He can play off the ball, he can play on the ball. He can guard multiple guys. I’m done calling him this or that. I just want him to go out there and be a winning player for us.”
Ntilikina and Smith had a cordiall relationship when they were rival rookies. Smith told The Post last season Ntilikina was one of the guys he spoke with the most at rookie orientation. Smith said the other night he and Ntilikina recently were alone in the gym working on their shots. Both have to work on becoming more reliable 3-point shooters. Ntilikina’s ca- reer 3-point percentage is 30.7, while Smith’s is 33.1.
“We know each other,’’ Ntilikina said. “We know when not in the same uniform, you’re always a rival against every one of your opponents. Now, we’re in the same uniform and it’s exciting. We‘re going to try to get better and make this team better.”
The Knicks coach has grown an appreciation for how Ntilikina has handled his rocky second season. He was taken out of the rotation twice and did not play on Christmas Day against the Bucks after his mother flew in from France for the contest.
Fizdale thinks the addition of Smith will end the rivalry narrative that existed between the two players.
“[Ntilikina’s] a great teammate,’’ Fizdale said. “He’s a pro. The kid works his tail off to be good. At least we finally got him to a place I feel like that he’s not worried about, ‘I got drafted ahead of this guy and I got this or I got that. I just want to be a good basketball player for the team I play for and help them win.’ I think that’s where he’s at.”
The Knicks have four games left before next weekend’s extended AllStar break. Their first game back is Feb. 22 against Minnesota at the Garden. That could be the start of The Frank & Dennis Show.