NEW YORK _ Frank Ntilikina raced upcourt on a fast break late in the first half Monday afternoon. As a defender closed in, he put the ball behind his back, softly flicking it to Enes Kanter to finish off the break.
As the Garden crowd applauded, it came with a disclaimer. This one moment in a 127-109 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, in which the Knicks were steadily manhandled, was a rare highlight in game nearly devoid of reasons for the home crowd to cheer. And it also came with the reminder that those two players could be part of the "Once a Knick, always a Knick" crowd, potential trade chips before the Feb. 7 deadline.
The Knicks trailed by as many as 24 points and never led for a second in this game, losing their sixth straight and 14th in the last 15. In this Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee, the Knicks drew two technical fouls and at least didn't get in a fight as they had 18 years ago on this day when Marcus Camby accidentally punched his head coach, Jeff Van Gundy.
After a week in which he remained home while the team went to London and made much more political news than basketball news, Kanter has been demoted to third-string center _ actually the fourth option on this day _ and both the team and player seem ready to part ways.
Ntilikina is a trickier proposition. He spent the time overseas being cheered on by the European crowd and questioned by the French media just why he hadn't found his way in New York now in his second season after being selected with the No. 8 overall pick _ the last prize of the Phil Jackson era.
Knicks coach David Fizdale told the European reporters, "I just want Frank to be Frank," but that hardly has seemed enough this season. Ntilikina started the season as a starting small forward, then got a brief three-game stretch as the starting point guard when Trey Burke failed in his audition as the starter. But almost immediately, Ntilikina and his fellow product of the 2017 draft, Damyean Dotson, were yanked from the starting lineup and Emmanuel Mudiay was inserted as the starting point guard, a role he has held even though he has little chance of having a future beyond this season in New York.
Ntilikina has maintained that the inconsistent role or minutes _ including a number of DNPs _ has not caused his confidence to waver.
"Only he knows that," Fizdale said. "I think sometimes we weigh the results and immediately base that on a confidence issue. Sometimes a guy is not playing well, or a guy is not making his shot. But that doesn't mean a guy is lacking in confidence. Those things don't have to go hand-in-hand. So I like the way he just continues to go about it, attacking this thing. And hopefully he'll just continue to grow over the next 38 games."
Asked if his role could change with the Knicks prioritizing the future _ leading to Kanter's place on the bench alongside Courtney Lee and Lance Thomas _ Fizdale wasn't providing any encouragement.
"I'm going to keep him in that backup point guard spot for now," Fizdale said. "And see if we can keep growing him at that as a defender, as a guy that can get us organized, a guy continuing to grow his shot, stay aggressive at the rim and just keep hammering those concepts on him.
"I think he's a team player. He's one of those type of players, a lot of people want him to be this scorer or playmaker and all that stuff but ultimately to win you need guys that can do all the other little stuff do. I think that is what he is."
It was easy to see the potential even in this one-sided loss. Ntilikina made a defensive stand to end the first quarter against Paul George, showing the skills on that end that are a rare commodity on the 10-35 Knicks' roster. He has struggled with his shot this season, but did show flashes Monday with a 3-pointer early in the second quarter and then a pretty left-handed drive.
It isn't his scoring or shooting though that the Knicks need if he sticks around through the rebuild. The Knicks figure to have plenty of scorers with Kristaps Porzingis back next season, Kevin Knox developing and another lottery pick and potentially a free agent star coming aboard. A pass-first point guard actually is a fit for the Knicks.
"I think you've got to have those guys," Fizdale said. "I do. I just think you've got to have guys that are thinking pass-first sometimes. Because again, if you've got enough guns you're going to need somebody to move that ball or those guns are going to go after each other's throats. That's just the balance that you have to find in your team and your roster as you build it. That's what I see in Frank right now. I think a lot of people see the same thing, even though we've all heard the different things that people want him to be. We're thinking big picture. Who's a winner? Who's going to be a guy that can help us win next year and into the future. That's how we're looking at Frank."
