Heading into the 2017-18 season, the New York Knicks have in many ways tempered the expectations around rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina.

However, veteran guard Ramon Sessions may have raised the bar extremely high on the 19-year-old by comparing him to All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.

“It’s funny,’’ Sessions said in his first remarks since signing with the Knicks. “It’s one of those things. I played with Johnny when he was younger. Kyrie when he was young. He’s got a lot of Kyrie tendencies. Not the most athletic guy but can handle the ball in tight spots. It’s still early on, but he definitely gives me that Kyrie feel when Kyrie was a rookie. “

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The comparison to Irving certainly elevates the level of expectations around Ntilikina given that Irving has developed into one of the premier point guards in the league. He is widely regarded as one of the top scorers at his position behind his well-rounded offensive skill set and unique ball handling ability.

In his rookie campaign, Irving averaged 18.5 points on 46.9 percent shooting from the field and 39.9 percent from beyond the arc with 5.4 assists and 3.7 rebounds in 51 games played that helped him earn the Rookie of the Year award and was the only unanimous selection to the NBA All-Rookie First-Team.

This may be some lofty praise, it does provide some insight into what kind of player Ntilikina can eventually become, an effective score-first point guard that can be a reliable source of offense for the Knicks for years to come.