The Mavs got a little more international when they signed former Knicks point guard Frank Ntilikina for training camp.
Here are three things to know about the new Mav:
1. The basics
Height: 6-4
Weight: 200 pounds
Date of Birth: July 28, 1998
Christmas villas: Strasbourg, france
Position: PG
Disorganized: Selected eighth overall in 2017 by the Knicks
2. Has cutlery
Ntilikina was selected to be part of the French national team this summer at the Tokyo Olympics and won a silver medal at the games. The French team knocked out Slovenia in the semi-finals to earn a place in the gold medal match where France would lose to the United States.
In the gold medal game, Ntilikina scored five points to go along with an assist and fly in 11 minutes on the field. It was the most he scored in any game at the Olympics.
3. Defensive versatility
When the Knicks selected Ntilikina eighth overall in 2017, it wasn’t because of his offense, but because of his defensive advantage. The French guard has a 7-1 wingspan and had this to say on the importance of the less glamorous side of the ball and on his new coach Tom Thibodeau in December 2020.
“Of course that translates, defense is really important in the game today,” Ntilikina said. “It allows a team to win championships, to be in games regularly and to win. Of course, he attached great importance to this side of the field. “
During her four NBA seasons, Ntilikina averages 1.5 interceptions and 0.5 against every 36 minutes.
4. Pulled
Last season with New York, Ntilikina set a career record 47.9% at 3 points. This brand surpassed its previous career record by 32.1%. Although his 3-point-per-game attempts fell from 2.4 to 1.5, that’s because his minutes per game dropped from 20.8 to 9.8.
Ntilikina’s 3-point attempts every 36 minutes actually went from 4.2 in 2019-20 to 5.4 last season, a career-high. In 2020-21, the Knicks as a team took very few shots from behind the arc, lifting just 30 3 points per game, ranking 27th in the league. But what they lacked in quantity, they made up for in quality by achieving 39.2% of their 3s, which gives them the third best 3-point shooting percentage in the NBA.
5. Fantastic nicknames
According to Basketball Reference, the new Maverick has three nicknames: Frankie Smokes, as invented by Jason Conception in 2017 while in The doorbell (now with Crooked Media), The Frenchise (a play by the former Knick Steve Francis nickname “La franchise”) and The French Prince.
Knicks fans even took Ntilikina’s Frankie Smokes nickname far enough to express it. and t-shirt.
Find more Mavericks coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
