New York Knicks point guard Dennis Smith Jr. turned to a proven veteran in former NBA player Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf to improve his jumper and shot-making abilities. Smith's agent in Raymond Brothers reportedly linked the two personalities to work out together heading into the upcoming 2020-2021 NBA season, as per the New York Daily News' Kristian Winfield.

The man dubbed as “the Steph Curry before Steph Curry” has established himself as one of the purest shooters that the league has ever seen. He recorded 19.2 points and 6.8 assists on 39% shooting from beyond the arc and 93% shooting from the foul line at the height of his career as a player for the Denver Nuggets back in the 1995-1996 season.

Abdul-Rauf played in the league for a total of nine years from 1990 to 2001 including pitstops with the Sacramento Kings and the then-Vancouver Grizzlies.  Now well in his 50s, he currently serves as a trainer for several players namely Markelle Fultz, Victor Oladipo, D.J. Augustin, Jerian Grant, and Spencer Dinwiddie.

On the other hand, Smith is coming off the worst campaign of his young NBA career after tallying averages of 5.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 2.9 assists on a 29.6% shooting clip from three and 50.9% from the foul line in 34 appearances last season.

He now finds himself at a pivotal point of his career as he heads to the final season of his rookie contract signed with the Dallas Mavericks since he was drafted back in 2017.

The former NC State product will have to step up and improve especially with the Knicks having high hopes of launching themselves back to relevance moving forward. With Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf's help, Dennis Smith Jr. will aim to take his game to the next level and finally live up to the high expectations once set on him and his career.