LeBron James Clarifies Knicks Draft Comments Were A Shot At Phil Jackson, Not Frank Ntilikina
LeBron James admitted that he was taking a shot at Phil Jackson and not Frank Ntilikina when he said the New York Knicks messed up by not drafting Dennis Smith Jr. of the Dallas Mavericks.
Jackson drafted Ntilikina with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft. The Mavericks nabbed Smith Jr. with the ninth overall pick. James said he was not thinking about the Knicks' rookie when he made the comments and that it was "definitely" a shot at Phil Jackson.
"I wasn’t throwing shade at Frank at all, for people that got their pants in bunches and things of that nature here in New York, that look for any controversy here,” James told reporters. “I was basically stating what I saw in Dennis Smith and what I saw from him coming out and watching the draft. I thought that he would be a great fit here with [Kristaps] Porzingis. That’s not saying Frank won’t be a great fit. I haven’t seen much of him.”
Watch James' full comments below:
• NBA Draft Dispatch: The Five-Man Race for No. 1
Porzingis and Enes Kanter defended Ntilikina after James' comments on Saturday night. Ntilikina is averaging 4.4 points, 5.0 assists, 1.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals in his 10 games played on the season.
