LeBron: Smith comments a shot at Jackson, not Ntilikina

NEW YORK » LeBron James says his belief that the Knicks should have drafted Dennis Smith Jr. wasn’t meant to slight Frank Ntilikina, though it was intended as a swipe at Phil Jackson.

James says, “Oh yeah, it was definitely a shot at him.”

James said Saturday after playing in Dallas that Smith should be a Knick. New York took Ntilikina with the No. 8 pick in the June draft, one spot before the Mavericks selected Smith.

James said he’s known Smith since the former North Carolina State point guard was 13 or 14. He knows only a little about Ntilikina, a teenager from France who had played overseas.

Last offseason, Jackson had said the Knicks needed a point guard, either through the draft or free agency. James figured they could do no better than taking Smith to play with Kristaps Porzingis. — The Associated Press