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.
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