GREENBURGH, N.Y. — When Frank Ntilikina was left on the bench for the entire game Saturday, the first time he’d been benched by a coach without an injury in his two NBA seasons, he was understandably disappointed. But to come to terms with his demotion he just had to look at the stars of the game that night.
It was easy to believe his time would come when Damyean Dotson, who was recently benched for four straight games, delivered 21 points in 33 minutes. Emmanuel Mudiay, who came up with big play after big play, first to send the game into overtime and then to help lift the Knicks past the Bucks with 28 points, played just 2:24 over the first eight games of the season and didn’t become a starter until the 15th game.