DETROIT _ Frank Ntilikina was on the court, lightly working through drills as the Knicks completed the morning shootaround at Detroit Country Day School. But Friday night as the Knicks took on the Pistons and for at least another week he is likely to be in street clothes when the game begins, recovering from a groin injury.
But just the fact that Ntilikina was with the team after the trade deadline passed might have been a surprise and that he could soon be paired in the backcourt with Dennis Smith Jr. might have been even more unlikely.
Smith, once a rival, now has inherited the starting point guard role with Ntilikina and Emmanuel Mudiay sidelined with injuries, and on a team stumbling to the finish line he has quickly emerged as the only show in town. He scored a career-high 31 points, helping the Knicks battle back from a 21-point deficit, tying the score in the third quarter, only to fall apart again as they lost, 120-103, at Little Caesars Arena. It was the Knicks 15th consecutive loss.
Ntilikina has spent his time in New York since being selected as the No. 8 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft trying to live up to his place in the draft, one spot ahead of Smith, and find a consistent role in New York. That may not have come with the deadline passing, but it did represent another opportunity for him to make it happen.
"Yesterday (as the deadline passed) 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 and try to be the best Knick as possible."
That won't likely be seen until after the All-Star Break, giving him more time to rehabilitate from the injury that has sidelined him since Jan. 27. But as a defensive-minded point guard, he believes that the player he seemed destined to measure himself against _ Smith _ can work together with him.
Smith has a long way to go to be the defensive player that Ntilikina is. But Ntilikina will likely never do the things that Smith can do _ like the 360 dunk he threw down on a breakaway in the third quarter Friday, a preview of his appearance in the Slam Dunk Contest on All-Star Weekend.
Since Ntilikina went out with the groin injury the Knicks dealt away the other player who was a lottery pick chosen by the Knicks _ Kristaps Porzingis _ and brought back Smith in the trade.
"I was excited, man," Ntilikina said. "We bring in another young guy as talented as Dennis, it's 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.
"We know each other. We know when not in the same uniform you're always a rival against everyone 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."
Knicks coach David Fizdale speculated recently that he could envision the pair working together. But how it would work, who would shift off of the point guard role, is still up for grabs.
"I don't know," Fizdale said. "I'll let them both handle. (Ntilikina) would obviously guard the bigger of the two guys. Frank is just a guy, I'm tired of trying to label him. I even can get caught up getting frustrated trying 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."
In recent days the Knicks have moved to clear out players that they felt didn't fit with their plans. Porzingis was seen as not on board with the plans and Enes Kanter was understandably frustrated with his diminished role before being waived after efforts to trade him came up empty. Ntilikina could understandably be upset, too, with having been left on the bench during his time in New York, having seen an assortment of journeymen start ahead of him. But he has not asked out or complained about his role, whatever his role is.
"I mean, he'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."
