After the earlier debacle of prompting the New York Knicks made a mistake by passing on Dennis Smith Jr. in the 2017 NBA Draft, LeBron James tried to rectify his approach by showering rookie Frank Ntilikina with praise ahead of a back-to-back matchup against the Knicks.

“I think he knows how to play the game,” said James, according to ESPN's Ian Begley. “That's the best thing, first of all. Very cerebral basketball player. I think, defensively, he's more advanced than offensively. But I think offensively, he's gotten better as he's gotten more opportunity and played more games.”

“I think every game, more and more, he gets the opportunity to play, more and more, he gets comfortable with the NBA game, his offensive game is getting better. Defensively he's been good since he probably stepped on a basketball floor defensively so, it's good for him.”

James was no stranger to Ntilikina even from before the NBA Draft, as his close friend Romeo Travis had played next to him in France. The rookie point guard and James got into a shoving match during their last encounter, which had caused some turbulence due to James' praise for Smith, which by default undermined Ntilikina as a prospect.

The 6-foot-5 point guard has gotten plenty of more run in the second half of the season, now allowed to explore more with Jeff Hornacek making a point to put his youth on the court, with the season almost under wraps.