New York Knicks rookie Frank Ntilikina put in his worst performance since his debut as he went scoreless with one assist and four turnovers in 11 minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers. He didn’t even play in the fourth quarter despite the Knicks building up a massive lead.
However, head coach Jeff Hornacek explained that his prized rookie was not at 100 percent due to an illness, which was why he played so poorly and didn’t feature in the fourth.
Per Ian Begley of ESPN:
Hornacek said Ntilikina didn’t play in 4th vs. LAC due to illness. “He’s been fighting it two, three days now. He just didn’t have it (vs LAC)….He actually said, ‘I’m not helping the team now.’ Frank’s a smart player. He realized he didn’t have enough energy. He sacrificed.”
It speaks volumes about how well Ntilikina has played so far this season that it’s actually surprising when he has a bad game. Luckily, he had a legitimate reason for being off against the Clippers with his illness.
Hopefully for the Knicks, he'll be able to recover from that ailment soon. They will need Ntilikina's energy and defense for their upcoming rematch with Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday.
Follow Us
Subscribe