New York Knicks: Q&A with Frank Ntilikina on Call of Duty, team legends

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 10: Frank Ntilikina #11 of the New York Knicks calls out the play in the second half against the Chicago Bulls at Madison Square Garden on January 10, 2018 in New York City.The Chicago Bulls defeated the New York Knicks 122-119 in double overtime. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 10: Frank Ntilikina #11 of the New York Knicks calls out the play in the second half against the Chicago Bulls at Madison Square Garden on January 10, 2018 in New York City.The Chicago Bulls defeated the New York Knicks 122-119 in double overtime. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

New York Knicks guard Frank Ntilikina spoke to Daily Knicks on his second season and hyped up the next Call of Duty game.

On Wednesday, Oct. 17, Frank Ntilikina will officially embark on his second season with the New York Knicks. It brings new expectations and excitement to see what the Frenchman can do in the 2018-19 campaign.

Selected No. 8 overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, Ntilikina averaged 5.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists in his first year. What will arise when he retakes the court?

Before that, Daily Knicks had a chance to discuss the season with Ntilikina and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, which released on Oct. 12 and features the new Battle Royale game mode, Blackout, for gamers to dive into.

Daily Knicks: Compared to when you entered your rookie season, how has your mindset changed?

Frank Ntilikina: My mindset has changed because I will continue to work hard and know that this is an important year. I know that I can be better so I worked really hard this offseason to put myself in the best position for this year.

DK: Through training camp and especially the two preseason games, what have you been most pleased with from your game that you worked on in the summer?

Ntilikina: My aggressiveness and working on getting to the hoop. I worked a lot on that this summer on getting to the basket more and because of that I am able to do it better so far this year.

DK: The other night a big deal was made of Mitchell Robinson going face-to-face with Markieff Morris. What was your “welcome to the NBA” moment?

Ntilikina: I had a moment much like Mitchell in his first game where I went face-to-face with LeBron during our first game of the Cavaliers and had a veteran that was trying to “welcome me” to the NBA.

DK: What did Patrick Ewing talk about when he visited before the preseason?

Ntilikina: Patrick came and talked to us about the Knicks and the pride in being a Knick and to understand everything about playing in New York, it was great to hear from a legend like Patrick.

DK: Is there another Knicks legend you have learned from or hope to speak with?

Ntilikina: Walt Frazier, being that he is around the team so much I have started to speak with him a little bit to learn from him about everything regarding the Knicks as well.

DK: What do you think needs to happen to make the 2018-19 season successful?

Ntilikina: To have a better season than last year. It’s really the goal as a sophomore to take what I learned from my rookie season and just work on my game and improve on each and every part of the game, finish the season and make it better than last year.

DK: When did you start playing video games?

Ntilikina: Yeah, for a long time, I’ve been a gamer. It comes from my big brother to my older brother, and I used to play with them—video games—when I was young, like when I was eight years old, with games like Call of Duty. I’m actually really excited to play the new game.

DK: Before Call of Duty Black Ops 4, what has been your favorite game of this franchise?

Ntilikina: The last one, World War II, was really good. Watching the preview for the new one coming up got me excited from playing it.

DK: What are your thoughts on the game’s new battle royale game mode?

Ntilikina: I think it’s going to be great. Playing Call of Duty is going to be so good. It’s going to be realistic, and you will like the game even more. It’s going to be great.

DK: If there’s anyone in the world you’d play against, who would it be in Call of Duty?

Ntilikina: My teammates. We are all excited about the new game. I think we’re going to play it a lot.

DK: Who would be in your ultimate Call of Duty squad?

Ntilikina: I would say Mario Hezonja is really good.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is available to purchase now for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Please visit the game’s website for more information.