Charlotte Hornets guard Frank Ntilikina is set to miss at least four weeks due to a non-displaced fracture of his left tibia and will be re-evaluated in a month. The injury occurred during Thursday’s 127-99 loss to the Boston Celtics in Charlotte’s fourth preseason game.
Ntilikina, 25, is slated to serve as the backup point guard to LaMelo Ball in the 2023-24 season, and he received high praise from Hornets coach Steve Clifford for being Charlotte’s best defender.
“He’s our best defender. His team defense is very good,” Clifford said. “His individual pick-and-roll defense is…I would dare say there’s not many guys in this league better than him.
“He can guard primary scorers and there are not many guys who can do that. You get that type of defense with six assists and no turnovers then obviously he’s helping you.”
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OFFICIAL: Guard Frank Ntilikina suffered a non-displaced fracture of his left tibia in our preseason game against the Boston Celtics.
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) October 21, 2023
In August, Frank Ntilikina signed a one-year, $2.53 million contract with the Hornets. The 6-foot-4 guard was selected eighth overall by the New York Knicks in the 2017 NBA Draft. Born in Belgium and raised in France, the 6-foot-4 guard spent the first four seasons (2017-21) of his NBA career with New York.
Ntilikina made 55 starts in 211 appearances with New York across four seasons. With the Knicks, the guard averaged 5.5 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 19.5 minutes per game while shooting 36.6% from the floor and 32.8% beyond the arc.
Charlotte Hornets guard Frank Ntilikina out a month due to a non-displaced fracture of his left tibia
In 57 games and 26 starts of the 2019-20 season, he averaged a career-high 6.3 points per game. Along with logging 2.1 boards, 3.0 assists, and 20.8 minutes per game, Ntilikina shot then-career bests of 39.3% from the field and 32.1% from downtown.
In New York’s 122-115 loss to the Washington Wizards on Mar. 10, 2020, he recorded a career-high 20 points, two rebounds, 10 assists, and two steals in 30 minutes off the bench. The guard finished 6-of-9 (66.7%) shooting from the floor and drained three 3-pointers.
Following the 2020-21 season, Ntilikina signed a multi-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks.
#Hornets finishing up practice. Frank Ntilikina didn’t participate, but was walking around in slides. Steve Clifford said he’s expected to get an MRI this afternoon.
“He felt a lot better, so we’ll see,” Clifford said. We’ll know a lot more by tomorrow.” pic.twitter.com/IcPSIjE86I
— Rod Boone (@rodboone) October 20, 2023
In 58 games with Dallas in the 2021-22 season, the guard averaged 4.1 points, 1.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 11.8 minutes per contest. Plus, he shot career bests of 39.9% from the field and 96% at the foul line.
However, his stats regressed in the 2022-23 season. Last season, Ntilikina made five starts in 47 appearances with the Mavericks. He averaged 2.9 points, 1.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 12.9 minutes per game while shooting 36.4% from the floor and 25.4% outside the arc.
The Hornets open their 2023-24 regular season on Wednesday against the Atlanta Hawks.
