The New York Knicks suffered a setback Monday in their quest to field a healthy roster at the start of the regular season. Point guard Frank Ntilikina missed practice with a strained groin. This could potentially be a big deal, as the Frenchman missed 31 of the team’s last 33 games last season with a groin ailment.
Head coach David Fizdale said the team is holding Frank out as a precautionary measure. Per Ian Begley:
“I don’t know exactly what it is. I know it’s his groin. I think we’re still in that realm of we would rather err on the side of caution, then try to push something when a guy feels something, especially in the preseason. We’ll re-evaluate him Tuesday and see where he’s at.”
Frank hasn’t put up big numbers in his first two preseason games, but he has clearly outplayed veteran point guard Elfrid Payton, who started both contests.
We had some good news on the weekend, as point guard Dennis Smith Jr. and shooting guard Damyean Dotson both returned to full practice. It’ll be interesting to see if Fizdale inserts Dennis into the starting point guard spot when he makes his preseason debut on Wednesday. Either way, it seems unlikely we will see our sweet boy Frank. Get well soon, Frank’s groin.