It has been a rough 2017-18 NBA season for New York Knicks rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina. The eighth overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft has taken some criticism to start his career for his early selection before some of the rookie phenoms taken after him.

Although he has shown some signs of promise at times this season, he has largely floundered as of late. According to Al Iannazzone of Newsday, Nkilitina was frank about his ability to play at a much higher level:

“I can play a lot better,” Ntilikina said.

The rookie added that he has been his own worst critic amidst his struggles as of late.

“I have a short memory,” he said. “But the thing is I’m also hard on myself. I want to be great. So when I do something bad, I know it. I’m hard on myself for sure. It is required to become a great player.

“It motivates me. It’s motivation. I know I have a lot of potential and I can do some great things in this league.”

Ntilikina is averaging an abysmal 5.3 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game this season. However, his performance has now reached a new low after being held scoreless in four of the Knicks' last seven games.

Furthermore, the addition of point guard Trey Burke has given New York another option to run the offense for the time being. That said, Ntilikina will need to start flexing his perceived triple-double ability soon if he wants to start seeing an uptick in playing time.